Lake County Gazette

Illinois Rep. Blaine Wilhour blames bad police and lack of manpower for new data that shows that arrests were made for only 5% of major crimes in Chicago in 2022 – a sharp decline from 2019.

According to data shared Feb. 3 by Wirepoints, arrests for murders, sexual assaults, aggravated batteries and carjackings in 2022 were significantly down from the 10% reported in 2019. Wilhour isn't surprised by the drop, because the city can't keep good officers, he said.

"Police departments in major cities like Chicago are losing people and finding it very difficult to hire replacements," he told the Lake County Gazette. "Fewer officers by default means fewer arrests." 

Moreover, Wilhour added, fewer people are likely interested in working in law enforcement because local leaders hamstring their work.

"Some of the problem is the lack of support from mayors like Lori Lightfoot, but another part of the reason why fewer people are applying to police departments is the fact that the people they do arrest are immediately back on the streets," he said. "Lori Lightfoot is a strong supporter of the SAFE-T Act and other policies that will put more criminals on the streets. These policies are only serving to make the job of law enforcement more difficult."

The 5% total for "major crimes" includes murders, sexual assaults, aggravated battery, robberies, burglaries, thefts and motor vehicle thefts, Wirepoints reported. Arrest rates varied by the type of crime, based on the seven categories that cities typically report to the federal government. Chicago’s homicide arrest rate was down 5% to 29% in 2022 – a 13% drop from 2020.

The highest arrest rate among thefts in 2022 was the nearly 9,000 retail thefts, or a 16% arrest rate, according to Wirepoints. Of the nearly 20,000 thefts valued at more than $500, just 1% of cases resulted in arrests, and of the nearly 19,000 thefts of $500 and under, just 1.6% of cases resulted in arrests. For the almost 5,000 “thefts from a building” category, the arrest rate was 0.5%.

Wilhour believes more can be done to keep the public safe, including protecting the rights of gun owners.

"The very policymakers who are, in the name of public safety, trying to take away the Second Amendment rights of honest citizens are the very same people supporting efforts to undermine our criminal justice system," he said. "We need to not only arrest violent offenders, but as importantly, we need to prosecute them. The most important function of government is to keep our communities safe. Sadly, bad policies are making our state’s largest city less safe."

Changes in policy – and leadership – are necessary, Wilhour said.

"We need to repeal the SAFE-T Act. We need to defend, not defund, the police," Wilhour said. "We also need to defeat prosecutors like Kim Foxx who are intentionally refusing to prosecute criminals. We need leaders who will put the needs of honest citizens ahead of criminals."