BY MICHAEL LANSU
Homicide Watch Chicago
Chicago Police reported nine more murders last month compared to November 2013, yet killings remain down 3.5 percent compared to last year.
Police reported 38 November murders, a 31 percent increase from the 29 murders in November 2013. The November 2014 murder total is more in line with 2011 and 2012, when 37 and 39 people were killed in the month.
For the year, Chicago Police, which follows federal guidelines in how it counts murders, reported 369 killings through the first 11 months of the year.
The Cook County medical examiner’s office, which counts slayings differently, have reported 406 homicides, including 14 people fatally shot by police officers.
“With one month remaining in 2014 we have had the fewest amount of murders since 1965, but there’s much more work to be done and no one will rest until everyone in Chicago enjoys the same sense of safety,” said Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy.
Police spokesman Martin Maloney also noted that the first 11 months of 2014 had 13 fewer murders compared to the same time period in 2013, and 106 fewer than the first 11 months of 2012.
In November, shooting incidents and shooting victims followed the same trend as murders compared to November 2013.
Police reported 138 shooting incidents in November 2014, a 23 percent increase from the 112 shooting incidents in November 2013. There were 128 shooting incidents in November 2011 and 193 in November 2012.
For the year, police reported 1,885 shooting incidents, a 10 percent increase from the 1,714 through November 2013. There were 2,045 shooting incidents in the first 11 months of 2011 and 2,294 during the same time period in 2012.
Police reported 16- shooting victims in November 2014, a 19 percent increase from the 134 shooting victims in November 2013. There were 146 shooting victims in November 2011 and 107 in November 2012.
For the year, police reported 2,366 shooting victims, a 13 percent increase from the 2,098 through November 2013. There were 2,335 shooting victims in the first 11 months of 2011 and 2,716 during the same time period in 2012.
“We will continue to build on our community policing efforts, fostering stronger relationships with the residents we serve, and we will continue to put more officers in high crime areas and proactively intervene in gang conflicts,” McCarthy said.