Bloody Year: City Already Surpasses 2007 Homicide Total

With about two months left in the year, Chicago has already surpassed last year's total homicide count.

Two teenage boys shot and killed during a fight on an Englewood street Thursday evening were the latest victims.

The deaths of Brian Murdock, 15, and Quinton Buckner, 17, brought the total number of people killed to at least 446, according to reports from the Sun-Times News Group wire. At the end of 2007, 443 homicides were recorded in the city.

The official homicide count through Oct. 31 was 441, a 16.4 percent increase over last year at that time.

Read the entire story here.

Comments

[postman606]

A failing economy, in a culture of gangs, guns and drugs, mix in a police department demoralized by it's current superintendent, prescription for the high murder rate.

[timberdoodle]

When you live by the gun you die by the gun. Quite often I listen to American TV stations with programs on self defence and guns to be used in this manner.

When I think about someone buying a gun for the sole purpose of self defence I realize the sole purpose of that firearm is to kill and sole purpose of the person acquiring that gun for that reason is doing it to kill.

I kind of like the old fashioned idea of letting the law and the courts look after the law breakers and forget about individuals practicing vigilante tactics.