Chicago records deadliest January in four years

There has also been an increase in shootings, 201 in January 2021 compared to 137 in the same month in 2020 even though Chicago has some of the strictest gun control laws in the country.

Car theft was also up to 851 incidents, compared to 671 in the same time period in 2020. Car jackings more than doubled in 2020 compared to 2019.

Superintendent David O. Brown said at a press conference in January, "The spikes in vehicular carjacks are a regional and national issue that both urban and suburban cities are experiencing across the country. Motives include joyriding and to facilitate anonymity while committing other crimes, to include robberies and shootings."

According to Brown the majority of these offenders are between the ages of 15 and 20 with the youngest person caught attempting a carjacking was only 13-years-old.

Brown asked "teachers, mentors, coaches, parents, the faith community, and others" to step up. Chicago students remain home from school as Chicago Public Schools (CPS) have been trying to return to in-person learning but have been blocked repeatedly by the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) who refuse to return to work.

Last month it was revealed that Sarah Chambers, an executive with the Chicago Teachers Union, went on a lavish vacation to the Caribbean while encouraging teachers to stay-home, claiming it was unsafe for them to go back to school amid the pandemic. While on her Caribbean vacation, Chambers threatened a strike if teachers returned to the classroom because 'it’s unsafe.'

Chicago Public Schools have been closed for in-person learning since March 17, 2020. Even though former President Donald Trump has been out of office since January 20, Democrat Mayor of Chicago Lori Lightfoot made an appearance on CNN’s New Day last week to blame the former President the standoff between Chicago Public Schools and teachers unions on returning to the classroom. In an outlandish statement, Lori Lightfoot said the standoff between the public schools and teachers unions were "because of the incompetence of the previous administration."

A previous strike by the CTU, forced Chicago schools to remain closed in 2019 for 2 weeks.