Free Republic

The refrain is heard almost as often as the fatal gunshots: The way to reduce Chicago’s gun violence is tougher prison sentences for repeat gun offenders, keeping them off the streets and decreasing the city’s mounting death toll. That idea, pushed by the mayor, police superintendent and others, shifts pressure from patrol officers of the city’s West and South sides to the Capitol, where legislators will consider how to balance law and order with finding alternatives to imprisoning young blacks and other minorities.In that building, in the same Senate seat where Barack Obama launched his political career and focused on...

A barbecue at a South Side park was interrupted by gunfire early Tuesday, leaving Antian Hardmon, Ayanna Northern, and Tyrone Spikes dead, and three other people injured in the Fuller Park neighborhood.About 30 people were enjoying the barbecue, a memorial for someone who died in a crash years ago, when more than 15 shots rang out, according to a woman who wished to be identified only as “Shorty.”Five people were shot about 12:10 a.m. in the 300 block of West 42nd Street when two males opened fire from an alley, according to Chicago Police. Lawn chairs and beer cans could...

Following a particularly violent Fourth of July weekend, violence in Chicago continued Saturday with 21 people shot overnight, including three people wounded outside a Northwest Side pizza restaurant. The shooting took place around 10 p.m. Friday in the 6000 block of West Fullerton Avenue when someone opened fire on three people outside Marco’s Pizza in the Belmont-Cragin neighborhood, according to authorities.

"The solution does not just include policing — although we'll continue to look for ways to put more police where they're needed. We also have to give our young people alternatives to the street, and as a community we need to demand more of ourselves and our neighbors." — Mayor Rahm Emanuel, on Chicago's blood-soaked Fourth of July weekend As Sunday night crept (no doubt cautiously) to Monday morning, residents of the South Chicago neighborhood endured a firefight. They witnessed a tide of mayhem worthy of urban war zones worldwide. This is not how Chicago wants to build its reputation...