CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Mayor Lightfoot and Chicago’s top cop are vowing to make some serious changes in the new year, after 2021 became the city’s most violent year in a quarter century.
Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown stressed the need for trust between officers and Chicagoans.
"Community policing is about having more officers visible and accessible in our neighborhoods-building trust," he said.
“The department, last year, had more than 500,000 positive community interactions,” he said. “This year, our goal is to have at least 1.5 million positive interactions that are engaging with the community and building trust.”
Mayor Lightfoot demanded more federal help in stopping the flow of illegal firearms.
"We have to do more to take the heart out of the illegal gun trafficking that is putting illegal guns into the hands of dangerous people who don't care about who they kill, harm, or maim," she said.
“No one can be comfortable with the way that we ended the year, the number of homicides we had,” she said. “More than New York or Los Angeles.”
She also emphasized the need for more local help in keeping violent offenders off the city streets.
"It's not only a slap in the face to our officers and the lives that they risk every single day to bring these individuals to justice; It's a slap in the face to victims."
Lightfoot also called for more investment to keep young people away from gangs and more emphasis to be put on criminal justice reform.
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