CHICAGO CITY HALL (WBBM Newsradio) -- Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said the city is holding people accountable following a series of violent gatherings over the Memorial Day weekend, and dismissed suggestions that ordinances need to be toughened.
The mayor told reporters during an appearance in his fifth-floor office here Wednesday that the city's numbers confirmed no one was killed over the holiday weekend and shootings were down from the previous year, but said officers responded to numerous reports of "teen takeovers" in the city.
"Communities across our city still felt the impact from an intolerable level of violence," the mayor said. "This behavior is dangerous and reckless. We will not accept any act that places Chicagoans in danger."
That includes Monday's night's gathering at 57th Street Beach that moved into nearby Hyde Park. Officers arrested 53 people and seized nine weapons.
The mayor said police manage to shut down most planned takeovers before they happen, and repeated his insistence that shutting down those gatherings involves more than just more police officers or more laws.
"There were 15 arrests on Sunday," he pointed out. "They did not stop the trend from happening on Monday."
However, last weekend's surge of activity has sparked new calls from members of City Council for additional tools to punish parents whose children are involved.
"There are already laws on the books that do that," the mayor said. When pressed if those laws needed to be changed, he responded "that's a legislative question," and would not comment on any specific changes, saying it would be irresponsible to do so without seeing an actual proposal.
Police arrest 53 after Monday night gathering; aldermen mull crackdown
Police arrest 53 after Monday night gathering; aldermen mull crackdown
