Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel listens while Interim Police Superintendent John Escalante addresses efforts to restore accountability and trust in the Chicago Police Department on December 30, 2015. Emanuel announced changes to police training and equipment, including arming officers on street duty with tasers, after several officer-involved shootings. Photo by Kamil Krzaczynski/UPI
CHICAGO, Jan. 3 (UPI) — Chicago had the most homicides of any city in the United States last year as murders and shootings rose significantly but overall crime decreased for a fourth straight year.The Chicago Police Department’s end-of-year crime statistics showed 468 people were murdered in Chicago in 2015 compared to 416 in 2014, a 12.5 percent jump. There were 2,900 shootings in 2015 — up 13 percent from 2014 and up 29 percent since 2013.Overall crime was reduced for a fourth straight year, as robberies, aggravated battery, burglaries and theft significantly decreased, according to police.
Nationwide for 2015, the Brennan Center for Justice estimates an 11 percent increase in homicides in the country’s 25 largest cities in 2015 but a 1.5 percent decrease in overall crime. The center reports homicides in Baltimore are estimated at 54 per 100,000 residents, the highest since 1993, and violent crime in Los Angeles is up 20 percent.
