(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Illinois State Police on Monday touted 133 arrests for expressway shootings — on a day someone was wounded on the Dan Ryan.
There has been an explosion in shootings on Chicago-area expressways in the last two years, and the ISP increased patrols in the fall.
State police tracked more than 300 expressway shootings last year, and Director Brendan Kelly said many of them are fueled by arguments on social media.
“It’s almost like a modern form, a 21st Century form, of dueling,” he said.
Despite the challenges of crime scenes that can be up to a mile long and full of vehicles going 80 mph, Kelly said his agency has secured three homicide charges and one manslaughter charge in what he hopes is a message to criminals who open fire on expressways.
“You will be identified, you will be found, you will be arrested and you will be charged with the most serious offense under the law,” he said.
There were 24 homicides on the expressways last year.
On Monday, a motorist was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries after a shooting on the Dan Ryan. State police said it happened in the southbound lanes around 11 a.m., shutting down those lanes for about two hours for an investigation.
Related
