Chicago City Wire

Rep. Brad Stephens (R-Chicago) recently slammed Illinois Democrats for failing to pass legislation that he said would bring the state's crime rate down.

Stephens stated in an April 4  Facebook post that legislators should prioritize public safety with proposals that have been publicly examined and discussed rather than "forced through the General Assembly in the final days of the session."

"The House is scheduled to adjourn this Friday and we have yet to see Democrats' promised anti-crime package," Stephens said, "Illinoisans deserve better."

The Chicago City Wire reports that Stephens and other Illinois Republicans have also pushed to repeal the 2021 Illinois Safety, Accountability, Fairness, and Equity-Today (SAFE-T) Act and have introduced legislation to do so.

Democrats continue to oppose repealing the Act and accuse Republican legislators of using "scare tactics" when addressing Illinois' crime problem.

According to SafeWise's 2022 annual State of Safety poll, just 42% of Illinois people report feeling safe, whereas 64% report experiencing "high daily concern" regarding safety.

Furthermore, 13% of people polled said they had personally experienced gun violence, increasing from 8% the previous year.

Mass shooting events in the state also surged by 25% between 2020 and 2021.

The Chicago Tribune reports that 508 shootings and 128 homicides occurred in Chicago within the first three months of 2022, with carjackings also climbing by 3% since 2021.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports that gun violence resulted in 17 injuries and two fatalities on the weekend of April 2.

One such incident occurred on April 2 when a 16-year-old teenager was shot in the chest while walking in Hyde Park.

Another occurred on April 3 outside the Ford City Mall after a man shot and critically wounded a 78-year-old man and a 48-year-old woman before barricading himself in an apartment.

The gunman then opened fire on officers in Chicago, who fired back and killed him.