Chicago City Wire

Elected officials have constantly used Chicago as a talking point for a state with gun laws and a high crime rate. 

“Another mass shooting (defined as 4 or more shot) w/7 shot & 2 killed in Washington Park, 2nd mass shooting there in 2 wks. Chicago leads nation again with 38,” Paul Vallas, a mayoral candidate for the city of Chicago, wrote on Twitter. “Last year there were 58. Lack of witness protection ensures few arrests. Lightfoot/Brown have no solutions only spin.”

Everytown ranked Illinois the sixth strongest state with gun safety laws. It added the state does background checks, has a concealed carry permit and enforces secure firearms storage.

A mass shooting took place in Washington Park on Tuesday evening, leaving 2 people dead and at least 7 people injured, ABC reported. The two people who were killed were a 20-year-old man who was shot multiple times in the body and a 43-year-old man, identified as Lionel Coward, who was shot in the head.

The other victims ranged in age from 19 to 46. Chicago Police does not have anyone in custody and are asking anyone with information to call the anonymous tip line at 833-408-0069. There is a $15,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest.

“There is no reason why anyone needs to own weapons of war like the ones used by the Highland Park shooter,” Representative Joyce Mason said to The Center Square.

There have been 209 mass shootings in Illinois so far in 2022, higher than the national average of 48 and behind only California (257), which has a population more than 3 times larger than Illinois, according to World Population Review.

One way Illinois is working to address the crime in the state is the bipartisan House Public Safety and Violence Prevention Task Force. The Center Square reported the task force brought lawmakers, prosecutors, and a licensed gun dealer to generate ideas.

Chicago Police Deputy Chief Fred Melean said that according to the department's preliminary investigation, the shooting occurred around 7:45 pm and involved "two groups" in the park. Melean said "some kind of personal altercation" took place between the groups and “multiple shots were fired at that time.” He called the shooting a "tragic incident" and encouraged any witnesses to speak out, reminding them that the tip line is anonymous, according to a video posted by photojournalist Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere.

The aggression in Illinois goes beyond the streets. The situation in Illinois prisons revealed by investigations on the Illinois Department of Corrections showed correctional officers abuse the inmates. The Marshall Project and Illinois Public Radio reported inmates in the U.S. penitentiary in Thomson would get a “Thomson tattoo” because officers forced them to wear shackles that scarred wrists, ankles and abdomens.

Democrat Vallas announced that he is running for mayor of the City of Chicago in a video posted on May 31. Vallas highlighted several issues, including lead in drinking water, "sky-high property taxes," Chicago Public Schools (CPS) not "putting students first," and "rampant" violent crime. "Chicago is burning," Vallas said, showing footage of a police vehicle in flames with “ACAB” (“all cops are bastards”) spray painted on its side during the George Floyd riots of 2020, followed by footage of incumbent mayor Lori Lightfoot, Police Superintendent David Brown, and Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx.

The Black Lives Matter protests were falsely claimed: “Antifa burned cities.” However, Reuters reported the 45th United States President’s Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said that white supremacist extremists played a role in the violence. The Washington Post noted that Antifa is an ideology not a group of people, like the Proud Boys.

Democrat Vallas served as CEO of Chicago Public Schools (CPS) from 1995 to 2001, NBC reported. He then headed school districts in Philadelphia, Louisiana, and Connecticut.