Monthly CPD data published Tuesday shows that the city has recorded 418 homicides, 1,677 shootings and 1,988 shooting victims in 2023 through the end of August. Each of those totals is the fewest through the first eight months of a year since before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Stories by Matt Masterson
Chicago Has Seen 418 Homicides and 1,988 People Shot This Year, Lowest Numbers Since 2019: Police
Sep 5, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Two 15-Year-Old Boys Among 6 People Killed by Gunfire Over Labor Day Weekend in Chicago: Police
Sep 5, 2023 | Matt Masterson
According to preliminary Chicago Police Department data, 39 people were shot in 33 separate shooting incidents between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Monday. In addition to the six people who were fatally shot, a seventh person died of blunt force trauma.
Chicago Man Held Firefighters at Knifepoint in Gasoline-Soaked Home, Prosecutors Say
Sep 1, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Melvin Jordan, 47, was arrested and charged this week with two counts each of attempted murder, aggravated kidnapping and unlawful restraint, along with a single count of unlawful use of a weapon.
With Influx of Migrant Students, CPS CEO Pedro Martinez ‘Confident We Can Serve the Children’
Aug 31, 2023 | Matt Masterson
As Chicago Public Schools has seen an influx of migrant students, CEO Pedro Martinez said the district has been able to rely on its longstanding infrastructure to make sure these new students get the education and care they need.
Chicago Man Charged With Child Endangerment After Accidental Shooting Death of 8-Year-Old Boy
Aug 31, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Ramon Sumerlin, 41, is charged with child endangerment resulting in death and unlawful use of a weapon by a felon stemming from the Aug. 15 shooting of Jacari Brown.
White Sox Shooting: Woman Denies Gunshot Wound Was Self-Inflicted, But Questions Remain
Aug 30, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Details about the incident remain scarce, days after a 42-year-old woman was shot in the leg and a 26-year-old woman suffered a graze wound to the abdomen, which occurred in the fourth inning of the Sox’s Friday game against the Oakland Athletics.
Chicago Fire Lieutenant Dies Weeks After Suffering Injuries in House Fire
Aug 29, 2023 | Matt Masterson
The Chicago Fire Department on Tuesday confirmed 59-year-old Lieutenant Kevin Ward has died at the Loyola University Medical Center.
Chicago Police Officials Reveal New Information, Days After 2 Women Shot During White Sox Game at Guaranteed Rate Field
Aug 28, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Interim Police Superintendent Fred Waller said Monday his department has “almost completely dispelled” the idea that the shots that injured two women were fired from outside the ballpark, according to reporting from the Chicago Tribune.
Judge Refuses to Toss Out Criminal Charges Against Father of Alleged Highland Park Parade Gunman
Aug 28, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Judge George Strickland on Monday denied multiple motions filed on behalf of Robert Crimo Jr., including one that sought to have his criminal charges tossed out based on a violation of the state’s statute of limitations.
24 People Shot, 1 Killed, Over Weekend Across Chicago: Police
Aug 28, 2023 | Matt Masterson
According to Chicago Police Department data, 24 people were shot in 18 separate shooting incidents between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Sunday.
Retired Chicago Firefighter Pleads Guilty to Jan. 6 Insurrection Charges
Aug 25, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Court records indicate Joseph Pavlik pleaded guilty Friday in a Washington D.C. courtroom to obstructing law enforcement and knowingly entering and remaining in a restricted building following his arrest early this year.
Michael Madigan’s Ex-Chief of Staff Tim Mapes Guilty in Perjury Trial
Aug 24, 2023 | Matt Masterson
The verdicts came following a nearly three week trial and five hours of jury deliberations at the Dirksen Federal Building downtown.
‘Protect the Boss, Protect the Boss’: Closing Arguments Underway in Perjury Trial of Ex-Madigan Chief of Staff Tim Mapes
Aug 23, 2023 | Matt Masterson
“Our system of justice depends on the integrity of this process,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Julia Schwartz told jurors Wednesday. “What (Mapes) didn’t do, ladies and gentlemen, was tell the truth.”
Illinois Woman Charged in Federal Court With Threatening to Kill Donald Trump, Teen Son
Aug 21, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Tracy Marie Fiorenza, 41, was charged earlier this month in the Southern District of Florida with a count of transmitting a threat to kill or injure another person, according to a federal complaint.
CPS Students Head Back to School Monday as Excessive Heat Looms
Aug 21, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Mayor Brandon Johnson joined CPS CEO Pedro Martinez and Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates at Beidler Elementary School on the city’s West Side early Monday as kids began the 2023-24 school year.
4 Teens Among 7 People Killed by Gunfire Over Weekend in Chicago: Police
Aug 21, 2023 | Matt Masterson
According to Chicago Police Department data, seven people were killed over the weekend between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Sunday. During that time 40 people were shot in total, in 33 separate incidents.
Prosecutors Set to Rest Their Case Monday in Perjury Trial of Madigan’s Ex-Chief of Staff Tim Mapes
Aug 18, 2023 | Matt Masterson
The prosecution was expected to formally rest Friday, the trial’s ninth day at the Dirksen Federal Building downtown, but due to technical delays and ongoing testimony, that will be pushed back to the start of next week.
Jury Hears More Wiretapped Calls of Ex-Madigan Chief of Staff Tim Mapes as Perjury Trial Continues
Aug 17, 2023 | Matt Masterson
The FBI-recorded calls played in court Thursday related to former state Rep. Lou Lang — who resigned his position in early 2019 amid sexual harassment allegations.
CPS Could Spend Up to $5M on COVID-19 Rapid Tests for the Coming School Year
Aug 16, 2023 | Matt Masterson
The city’s Board of Education will vote next week on a one-year contract worth up to $5 million with the Pittsburgh-based Fisher Scientific company to provide COVID-19 testing supplies to the school district for the upcoming academic year.
Chicago Man Left Paralyzed in Police Shooting Files Suit Against City, Officers
Aug 15, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Raymond Comer, 38, filed a seven-count civil suit in Cook County court in which he claimed he was shot by a Chicago police officer multiple times as he sat inside a vehicle last August.
Bond Set at $5M for Teen Charged in Fatal Shooting of 16-Year-Old Highland Park Boy
Aug 15, 2023 | Matt Masterson
According to Lake County prosecutors, Estiven Sarminento, 16, appeared in court Tuesday after he was arrested on two counts of first-degree murder stemming from the fatal shooting Sunday of 16-year-old Omar Morales-Diaz.
The Northwestern Hazing Scandal: A Timeline of Allegations, Investigations and Lawsuits
Aug 14, 2023 | Matt Masterson
Examining the rapidly unfolding hazing scandal that led to the firing of Northwestern head football coach Pat Fitzgerald and threw the university into turmoil.
18-Year-Old Man Among 4 People Killed in Shootings Across Chicago Over Weekend: Police
Aug 14, 2023 | Matt Masterson
According to Chicago Police Department data, 28 people were shot in 19 separate shooting incidents between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Sunday.
Illinois Supreme Court Upholds State’s Assault Weapons Ban
Aug 11, 2023 | Matt Masterson
In a 4-3 decision issued Friday morning, the high court overturned a lower court’s ruling, stating the ban is constitutional and does not “deny equal protection nor constitute special legislation.”
Deadline Approaches for Johnson to Select Chicago’s Next Top Cop
Aug 10, 2023 | Matt Masterson
This weekend will mark the end of Johnson’s 30-day window to pick the next superintendent of the Chicago Police Department from a list of three finalists: Angel Novalez, the head of CPD’s office of constitutional policing and reform; Larry Snelling, the chief of CPD’s counterterrorism bureau; and Shon Barnes, the police chief in Madison, Wisconsin.
‘The Defendant Always Tries to Defend the Boss’: Opening Statements Underway in Perjury Trial of Ex-Madigan Chief of Staff Tim Mapes
Aug 9, 2023 | Matt Masterson
“When the defendant answered those questions, the defendant lied,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane MacArthur said, “not just once, but again and again and again to prevent the grand jury from finding out what Madigan had done and what Madigan had done through him.”