After years of declines, Chicago shootings tick up in 2026

Sam Charles, Chicago Tribune on Apr 9, 2026

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CHICAGO — After four consecutive years of steep drops in gun violence, shootings in Chicago ticked up in the first quarter of 2026.

The city recorded 105 murders through the first week of April, up slightly from the 98 killings seen in the same time period in 2025, according to city violence data. Another 266 people have suffered nonfatal gunshot injuries since the start of the year.

The first three months of the year saw disparate trends in violence within CPD’s five patrol areas, records show, with a mixed bag of increases and further drops.

The citywide uptick is largely due to an increase in both murders and nonfatal shootings in CPD’s Area 1, which covers the city’s South Side north of 79th Street. The area saw 114 shootings and 32 murders through April 5 — 25% and 52% increases, respectively — according to police data.

In an interview with the Tribune, Superintendent Larry Snelling noted that Area 1 has for decades been one of CPD’s most active, with “some serious gang conflicts” in the neighborhoods.

The superintendent noted that about one-third of all killings so far this year have occurred indoors, with some categorized as “domestic” while others, for now, appeared “random.” Snelling also pointed to the Grand Crossing (3rd) District, which has seen a spike in shootings after a steep drop in violence last year.

“We still have our plans in place, the 3rd District still has plans in place around this,” Snelling said Thursday. “We’re making sure that we’re pushing out more focused deployments on these types of things, but what we’ve seen is more random than anything else right now.”

“We really have to keep a higher focus on gun recoveries and getting guns off the street,” he added.

Outside Area 1, CPD’s four other patrol areas have collectively seen a 10% decrease in killings in 2026, police data show.

“Going into the summer, we always have a plan,” Snelling said. “The one thing about police work that’s important to understand — and what we see in society — is that there are ebbs and flows in what happens with crime. There are times when we see large spikes in crime, and then it’ll come down over time. There are also times where we see major lulls in crime, and then it’ll go up over time. It’s a balance where we, as a department, have to be fluid around these things.”

So far in 2026, CPD’s homicide clearance rate is 79%, according to a department spokesperson. Meanwhile, CPD officials say reports of robberies and burglaries have each fallen by more than 20% in 2026.

Bob Jackson, CEO of the anti-violence group Ceasefire in Roseland, said in a statement that the increase in violence has coincided with federal funding cuts to organizations such as his.

“Since the cuts, so many organizations have reduced their workers,” Jackson said. “As the numbers decrease, you have fewer people on the streets doing the work. Now, we’re seeing the violence begin to tick up.”

Earlier this year, Mayor Brandon Johnson joined a host of anti-violence organizations from across the city at the South Shore Cultural Center to celebrate 2025’s drop in shootings.

“Closing out 2025 with the fewest homicides in 60 years is a remarkable testament to the collaboration that is in this room,” Johnson said. “We know that community violence intervention is not this theory that people pontificate, but it’s proven to work. It saves lives and interrupts cycles of harm and creates pathways to healing.

“Let’s make sure that we are continuing to invest in you all,” Johnson continued. “I need your help and support to generate more progressive revenue so that we can invest more into CVI. We will continue to make sure that community violence intervention is not a temporary initiative, but a permanent pillar of Chicago’s public safety strategy.”

As the first quarter was ending, CPD unveiled a long-awaited study of the department’s officer deployment practices. The study, performed by Matrix Consulting Group, called for hundreds of CPD positions to be filled by civilians so that sworn officers can be reassigned to street work.

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