(The Center Square) – The president of the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police says crime in Chicago continues to plague the city.
John Catanzara, who has criticized city officials and their handling of crime, is meeting with city residents to try and help solve the city’s crime problem.
Mayor Brandon Johnson has been in office since May, and car thefts and robberies have risen significantly since. Overall, crime is up 26% when compared to last year.
Last month, Johnson said crime is down.
“It is something that I think about every day, I really do. Violence is literally outside my front door, but now it is better,” Johnson said. “What makes a city safe is creating opportunities and investment, and we’ve done that already.”
Catanzara said numbers may show crime is down in some areas, but perception is everything.
“We are taking suggestions and recommendations on what should be done because it is getting worse, not better,” Catanzara said. “Violent crime may be down, but the feeling of being less safe in this city is prevalent.”
This comes after a weekend in which 44 people were shot, and two died from their injuries. There have been 1,977 shooting incidents in the city so far this year.
The city is also dealing with a flow of non-citizens who have been bused to the Windy City from the southern U.S. border.
On CBS’s Face The Nation Sunday, Pritzker was asked if he thinks the city will be able to handle the Democratic National Convention, which is scheduled for next August, in the middle of the migrant influx.
“I am confident that we can handle it. But again, it will require help from the federal government, and someone needs to work in Texas with these border politicians to have them stop sending people only to blue cities and blue states,” Pritzker said.
Catanzara said if the city doesn’t get it under control, there will be issues.
“Our hands are somewhat tied. We have done everything we have possibly could to limit the impact on our police stations [where some migrants have been housed] and our members,” Catanzara said. “It is likely to get worse over the next 6 to 9 months before the convention.”
Chicago has seen over 16,000 migrants arrive over the past 13 months.
