Chicago Mayor Lightfoot’s $ 16 billion budget proposal includes more spending for police amid gun violence spike



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Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Monday unveiled her 2022 budget proposal, which includes increased spending on law enforcement amid gun violence unprecedented in several years.

The mayor’s $ 16 billion spending program brings police spending to $ 1.9 billion, from $ 1.7 billion in 2021, the Chicago Tribune reported. The proposal came after a bloody weekend that saw nine homicides across the city, 56 people shot dead and a city councilor attacked.

A CLOSE TO CHICAGO POSED AS A CLOSE TO HOMICIDE VICTIMS TO RECEIVE REIMBURSEMENTS FOR IMPT, STIMULUS COVID-19

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Monday proposed his 2022 budget, which increases funding for law enforcement.  (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Monday proposed his 2022 budget, which increases funding for law enforcement. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)

“I know community safety and thriving communities are our top concerns wherever you live in Chicago,” Lightfoot said in his address to city leaders Monday.

“Too often, when we talk about community violence, we forget about the victims,” ​​she added. “We know them, but they are more than statistics on crime. The lives deeply affected by the violence which, once on their doorstep, is perpetuated in one form or another forever.”

Approximately $ 400 million would be invested in community safety – $ 45 million for violence intervention programs and community groups and $ 10 million for youth diversion programs and wellness programs for children. Chicago police officers.

In August, Alderman Matt O’Shea told Fox News that the Chicago Police Department had lost 1,000 police officers over the years to retirements and the academy’s smaller classes.

Fox News has reached out to the Fraternal Order of Police Chicago Lodge, the union that represents rank and file officers, to comment on Lightfoot’s proposal.

The budget also offers $ 35 million in new and existing programs that provide assistance to people experiencing gender-based violence, including mental health resources, legal assistance and other services.

Like other cities, Chicago has seen a spike in violent crime that began last year in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic. As of September 12, the city had 558 homicides, up from 542 for the same period in 2020, according to police data.

Filming also increased to 2,490 this year from 2,276 last year.

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Elsewhere in the budget, the city will receive nearly $ 2 billion from the federal government as part of the US bailout, which will be used to close the city’s budget deficit over three years, the newspaper said.

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