Chicago has deadliest July in a decade

(Image credit: Jeff Haynes/AFP/Getty Images)

published 2 August 2016

With 65 shooting deaths, Chicago saw its deadliest July in 10 years.

On Monday, the Chicago Police Department released statistics for the previous month, which showed there were more than 360 shooting incidents and 441 shooting victims. Homicides in Chicago are rising at a faster rate than other cities, with 381 people murdered and 2,394 shot so far this year.

Police say since January, they have seized 5,000 guns and are working on arresting gang members. "We are continuing to use every resource to keep the streets of Chicago safe, while advocating for a legislative solution to hold repeat gun offenders accountable for their actions," Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said. The department is using data to create a Strategic Subject List, which identifies people who are likely to either shoot or be shot, The Wall Street Journal reports. Police say that close to 85 percent of all shooting victims in 2016 were on the list, and they are hoping to use the information to stop shootings before they happen.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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