Chicago has a serious crime problem, a fact that numerous people pointed out when the city's government formally called for a ceasefire in Gaza recently, with left-wing mayor Brandon Johnson casting the tie-breaking vote. Not only can't Chicago achieve anything close to a 'ceasefire' within its city limits, Johnson now wants to take away another law enforcement tool -- but with several comically inept twists. Officers are already hamstrung, and criminals emboldened, by destructive 'progressive' policies implemented in both the city and the state. The latest boon to criminals is the mayor's just-announced plan to eliminate a crime-fighting tool that helps authorities instantly detect gunshots as they're fired, which has long been a virtually non-stop phenomenon, despite Chicago's tough and ineffective gun laws. Under pressure from left-wing activists, Johnson is ending the city's partnership with ShotSpotter:
Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson has cancelled ShotSpotter - which geolocates gunfire to direct emergency response - because progressives demanded it. But not until after the convention, because residents are test subjects, not the DNC.
— Jeff Blehar is *BOX OFFICE POISON* (@EsotericCD) February 14, 2024
My latest for @NRO: https://t.co/9ZnYhZGruJ
Mayor Brandon Johnson won't renew the city's controversial contract with ShotSpotter, making good his promise to end the gunshot detection system. The contract will expire on Friday, and the city will stop using the technology on Sept. 22...Ald. Silvana Tabares (23rd) said, "The only people against ShotSpotter are the organizers, the community organizers who want to use the money that saves Black and brown lives into their own pockets." While police have applauded the technology, Chicago's $49 million contract with SoundThinking, the company behind ShotSpotter, has been in the crosshairs of community activists for years.
Critics say the technology is unreliable and ultimatley ineffective, but it's been supported by law enforcement and most city residents. Johnson is a hardcore leftist devoted to ideology above all else, so he's axing the tool. As pointed out in the tweet embedded above, however, he intended to keep it in place through the Democratic National Convention, observers noted. If ShotSpotter is so useless, people are asking why Johnson won't axe it before all the party bigwigs come to town this summer?
Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29th) said he was "very disappointed" in the decision and believes the city is taking a resource away from both police officers and from communities that rely on a quick police response. "You're taking that tool away and relying on a 911 call. That 911 call may never happen," he said. "So how do you have a police response without that?" A group of other aldermen and South Side residents who support the gun detection technology spoke against the mayor's decision at a news conference Tuesday. Ald. Anthony Beale (9th) noted that the city will stop using the technology right after the Democratic National Convention this summer. "You want to wait until all the dignitaries come from around the country, then cancel shot spotter the month after they leave," said Beale. "When you put politics in front of public safety - politics in front of public safety - we have to draw the line." "That was put there to protect us, and now you want to take it down?" said Debra Collins, who supports ShotSpotter.
Here's a pro-ShotSpotter Chicago alderman highlighting the dozens of gunshots detected around the city just a few days ago and mocking the mayor's plan:
How many people called 9-1-1? ShotSpotter alerted everyone before a single person picked up the phone. Maybe a climate ambassador is already on scene recycling the bullet casings ♻️ https://t.co/PpAVI4rXTP
— Ald. Raymond Lopez (@RaymondALopez) February 14, 2024
But wait, there's more to the story. In addition to Mayor Johnson's ideological extremism, we also have more evidence of his darkly hilarious ineptitude. I wrote earlier that he intended to keep ShotSpotter up and running through the DNC. Oops:
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson announced Tuesday he was discontinuing the city’s ShotSpotter contract after a six month extension through the summer months. But he didn’t have the contract extension signed before saying that. Meaning he gave away all the city’s leverage to cut a… pic.twitter.com/5qFmroXfIw
— Austin Berg (@Austin__Berg) February 15, 2024
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson announced Tuesday he was discontinuing the city’s ShotSpotter contract after a six month extension through the summer months. But he didn’t have the contract extension signed before saying that. Meaning he gave away all the city’s leverage to cut a deal. ShotSpotter is now (predictably) rejecting the mayor’s extension offer and is expected to flip the off switch on Friday, throwing a wrench in Chicago’s public safety infrastructure. Regardless of what you think about ShotSpotter, this is the worst rollout possible for such a consequential decision. Recall that top Johnson aide Jason Lee blamed an auto-pay feature for the administration’s $10 million contract extension with ShotSpotter last summer.
Will he blame this on having a "black wife" and "three black children," too? The nation's third-largest city is run by wild-eyed radicals and bumbling fools. Congrats, voters. And speaking of that combination, let's check in on the nation's capital, where the Mayor recently announced the establishment of anti-crime "Safe Commercial Corridor Hubs" in the Chinatown area. Ah:
ARMED STREET ROBBERY--- in the area of Capital One Arena and the firehouse, 6th St and F St NW DC. Man was robbed of his wallet and a large amount of $$ by a man with a gun and another with a knife. #PennQuarterDC pic.twitter.com/wh9odX1D6w
— Alan Henney (@alanhenney) February 14, 2024
While some crime categories are falling in many major cities (although still very elevated, in many cases, over pre-2020 levels), DC is in very bad shape:
The number of critical shootings/victims in DC today is alarming.
— Marina Marraco (@MarinaMarraco) February 15, 2024
3 @DCPoliceDept officer SHOT in SE
3 people discovered shot DEAD at 7:30p tonight in Deanwood
2 shot HOMICIDE INVESTIGATION — started INSIDE Yeung Fong restaurant in Eckington/Bloomingdale https://t.co/HVkc1UgPRm pic.twitter.com/lkjIGyMwUU
No matter where you go, soft-on-crime policies beget more crime. Case in point -- one of the illegal immigrants who was released after assaulting cops in New York City was just picked up for...more crime, of course:
A suspect in last month's attack on NYPD officers in Times Square has been arrested again.
— Crime In NYC (@CrimeInNYC) February 14, 2024
Police say 19-year-old Darwin Andres Gomez-Izquiel was arrested for an alleged robbery Tuesday at the Macy's in Queens Center Mall.
He was one of the migrants arrested in the Times Square… pic.twitter.com/qmTHPvcRg3
Other jurisdictions take a different approach, yielding drastically different outcomes:
While retail theft has exploded in other parts of the country, it has decreased 30% in Florida over the past five years.
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) February 13, 2024
But we are not satisfied: will be working with the Legislature to enact even stronger reforms to drop the hammer on retail thieves. https://t.co/aXre2Q71L9
As of last year, Florida's crime rate was at a 50 year low. I'll leave you with this flashback clip:
CNN host Erica Hill was left speechless after their chief law enforcement analyst detailed the activities of the criminal illegals in the months since their arrival in the country
— Unlimited L's (@unlimited_ls) February 2, 2024
“They have crews here that operate in New York, do all their stealing, then go to Florida to spend… pic.twitter.com/lsMD1pX9mP
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