Even as crime dropped over the past three years, Americans consider Chicago the “most dangerous” city in the U.S. Only 33 percent of those surveyed by YouGov said the city was fairly or very safe.
The Chicago murder rate dropped to the lowest it has been since 1965, but city officials aren't fully satisfied. Shootings were also down by about 24 percent, and reports of overall crime have dropped by about 16 percent. However, Chicago’s 2013 death toll remains higher than those in New York and Los Angeles.
Three people, including a 3-year-old boy, are in critical condition Friday after an apparent gang-related shooting at a neighborhood basketball court in Chicago that left up to 13 people injured.
The closing of 50 schools this August in Chicago has prompted comparisons to the violent death of Derrion Albert, with warnings that the new school boundary lines could bring similar tension.
An emergency summit has also been called for late July in Chicago to address urban violence -- nine people were killed in the Midwestern city over Independence Day weekend, and more than 40 were injured, including two boys in city parks.
The proposed tax on guns within county limits is still on the table for the Cook County board, which would be the first tax used as a measure of gun control in the U.S.