Something in the Chicago Water Supply

Apparently not content with the number of people dying from COVID-19 in Cook County, Ill., which encompasses Chicago, the city’s thug element has continued its murderous habits.

The Memorial Day holiday weekend saw 10 homicides and 39 more people suffer gunshot wounds, followed by 20 more people shot and three killed the following Tuesday.

There may only be one certainty about all of this — the likelihood the killers illegally owned the firearms they used is probably 100%, if not very close. Chances are, most of the triggermen couldn’t even possess a firearm due to previous criminal activities.

At this writing, more than half of all Coronavirus-related deaths in the entire Prairie State had been logged in Chicago and Cook Counties. In any given year, Chicago produces more than half of all homicides reported in Illinois.

For example, in 2018 — the most recent year complete data is available — Illinois reported 864 murders, of which 708 were committed with firearms, according to the FBI Uniform Crime Report. The Associated Press reported on Jan. 1, 2019 Chicago had racked up 561 slayings in 2018. The farther one travels from Chicago, the safer one becomes.

This correspondent has been tracking Chicago homicides for several years. So has the Chicago Sun-Times, which publishes a depressing column, headlined “Chicago Homicide Watch.” The newspaper explains: “This database lists names of every victim who was killed by another person within city limits. It is to be a comprehensive page compiled from information provided by disparate law enforcement and regional agencies that have a role with respect to Chicago homicides, including gun violence. The page will be updated daily, initially with information from the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office and updated with additional reporting.”

We’re not certain why the Sun-Times, and nearly all other news agencies and news organs, single out “gun violence” over, say, “knife violence,” because the victims are just as dead.

For some reason, the gun prohibition lobby conveniently overlooks the fact that in any given year, more people are beaten and stabbed to death than are killed with rifles or shotguns. But that would spoil the “ban ‘assault weapons’” narrative.

https://apnews.com/a55e5f6e8b0842b0ae78a371d3cf1e75

https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2018/crime-in-the-u.s.-2018/tables/table-20

https://abc7chicago.com/20-shot-3-fatally-tuesday-in-chicago/6214478/?fbclid=IwAR28fDJL59vNCe4TS90JizmWzo8yWGI5cqlPLnWiCjCDSphacsQqR86WLtg

Sometimes, Good Guys win

For all the blood shed, there are occasions in Chicago that illustrate just how stupid some criminals are.

CWB Chicago recently reported a case involving five guys who exercised monumentally poor judgment when they picked a would-be robbery victim. Bad luck for them, because when they approached a 40-year-old man at about 2:15 a.m., one of them ordered the fellow to the ground.

They told the poor guy they had a gun. His response was something on the order of, “I’ve got one, too” and to prove he was a good sport, he showed it to them, muzzle first. On top of that, he had a badge, which really should not have been a surprise in retrospect because this caper happened within a short distance from the West Addison police station in the Lakeview district.

At that point, according to published reports, all five miscreants became track stars before police descended on the area and four ended up in custody. Among the four suspects — two adults and two juveniles — was 22-year-old Derrick Robie, who, according to CWB Chicago, has a rather colorful background.

Back in January 2018, Robie was charged with felony armed robbery, but he was reportedly released on his own recognizance. Several days later, he was arrested for allegedly taking a dying man’s wallet at the Loyola Red Line station. The victim apparently fell down some stairs and lost consciousness. Security images from a Chicago Transit Authority camera reportedly helped investigators identify the suspect.

And here comes the punch line: “Robie eventually received two concurrent three-year sentences for the crimes,” the story explained. “After receiving the state’s standard 50% sentence reduction for good behavior and credit for time served before sentencing, Robie only spent 16 days in prison before he was paroled on November 20 (2018) according to state records.”

By no surprise, once this fellow was in custody, the Illinois Department of Corrections issued a hold and he was locked up tight “while the state considers revoking his parole,” the story revealed.

The fifth guy apparently got away.

https://cwbchicago.com/2020/05/2-men-2-teens-charged-with-trying-to-rob-off-duty-cop-near-lakeview-police-station.html

Law ‘N Order Up North

There is “the Chicago Way,” and thanks to a report from Fox News, there evidently is also the “Kwethluk Way.”

Kwethluk, which probably cannot be said fast five times in a row, is village in western Alaska several miles above Bethel on the Kuskokwim River’s Kuskokuak Slough. There, on May 16, a “potential mass shooting was avoided” when a 19-year-old man was taken into custody in a strange incident even by frontier standards.

Fox News said the suspect broke into a public safety building with a rifle and allegedly tried to shoot a village police officer that does not carry a firearm. Indeed, the report said none of the 10 village lawmen carry guns, reportedly due to a lack of funding.

Fortunately, private citizens aren’t so budget-strapped because, Fox detailed, “a member of the Kwethluk community with a rifle arrived on scene and talked (the suspect) into surrendering.”

https://www.foxnews.com/us/armed-resident-thwarts-shooting-in-alaska-village

NRAAM Moved to September

The National Rifle Association announced this week it will hold its annual members’ meeting — as required by association bylaws — in Springfield, Mo. at the Springfield Expo Center on Saturday, Sept. 5, according to the Springfield News-Leader.

That is Labor Day weekend, so it’s unclear how many people will be able to attend, but this will only be the required members’ meeting; there will be no exhibits.

The newspaper quoted Dana Maugans, director of sales with the Springfield Visitors and Convention Bureau, who said the NRA has reserved a large space (Halls A, B and C) to allow for social distancing.

The meeting is expected to attract anywhere from 1,000 to 1,250 people, the newspaper said.