Dupage Policy Journal

The 11 people killed over the Memorial Day weekend in Chicago was the highest three-day told since 2015 when 12 were killed, prompting former state representative Jeanne Ives to deride, via Twitter, a new violence prevention program created by Mayor Brandon Johnson.

Ives posted "Most violent weekend in 8 years in Chicago. I guess those "Peacekeepers" Pritzker sent in and taxpayers paid for didn't help. You'll continue to pay next year at least $44 million has been allocated to a bunch of non-profits for violence protection.”

Along with nearly a dozen killed, another 45 were injured despite a safety program that funds the work of more than 250 grassroots organizations covering 25 communities, according to a report by The Center Square. The report noted that the aim is to work toward the common goal of violence prevention and enhancing local youth outreach programs.

The Memorial Day weekend normally marks the start of summer and a surge in gun violence in the city. Extra officers and so-called peacekeepers were placed at “hot spots” on the South and West Sides as part of the city’s peace-keeping mission. It didn’t help. Authorities said the 6th District on the South Side and the 11th District on the West Side experienced the most violence during the weekend, including at least 13 shooting victims in total.

The Center Square report stated that an unknown female was found stabbed to death just steps from Johnson’s home in the Austin neighborhood on the West Side. Later, a 36-year-old man was also found shot in the 700 block of North Pine Ave., also just blocks from the mayor’s residence. He was hospitalized in good condition.

The youngest victims were a pair of 2-year-olds who were shot in separate accidental shootings that took place on the South and West Sides, both incidents stemming from the victims discharging a weapon they were playing with, according to the report. Both are expected to survive, with one being hit in the forearm and the other in the hand.