Chicago police reported the seizure of 7,400 guns used in crimes, or that were unpermitted, in the past year — nearly double the 3,285 reported for New York City for the same time frame. That’s despite the fact Chicago has the toughest gun-control laws in the nation, prohibiting sales within the city and, until the Supreme Court found it unconstitutional in 2010, banning handguns.
According to The New York Times, Chicago is battling a wave of gun-related violence that belies the claims of gun-control advocates — that tightened gun regulations stop crime. Chicago has a ban on assault weapons and on high-capacity magazines; Illinois is the only state in the nation without a public right-to-carry law for private citizens.
Yet Tuesday, the paper reported, a 15-year-old girl was killed in a shooting, bringing the city’s total for gun-related deaths for 2013 to 40. Last year alone, the city saw 500 homicides, according to the paper.
Chicago police, meanwhile, report they have confiscated 574 guns since Jan. 1, and 124 of them in the past week alone.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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