Mayor accuses Chicago police of failing to win trust in neighborhoods

CHICAGO (Fox 32 News) - The mayor says there is no cause for celebration.

But the 21 shooting victims in Chicago this past weekend are barely half the number shot on the same weekend last year, and that number is far fewer than the 58 victims gunned down -- including eight dead -- the same weekend in 2016.

If it's Monday, Chicago's top cops are at City Hall to discuss what is working and what is not as Mayor Lori Lightfoot demands police become more pro-active.

"I think they now are getting used to me and understanding that, kind of a superficial, light touch isn't going to do it," Lightfoot said.

The mayor once again blasted police detectives for allegedly failing to win the trust of residents in the most violent neighborhoods.

"Showing up when there's a murder or a shooting or any other violent act and being the first time you've set foot in a neighborhood, without knowing any of the people, the relevant stakeholders, you're never going to win the trust of the community that way to be able to solve crimes, because they're not going to view you as legitimate," Lightfoot said.

The mayor did meet over the weekend with the president of the police union, a few days after union leaders posted a new attack on what they call "her inflammatory and often false rhetoric...scapegoating the police for the chronic violence that permeates our city."

Lightfoot said she and the union president plan to meet again.

"I've always thought there are things we can work collaboratively on, and I'm looking forward to that opportunity," Lightfoot said.

City Hall's current contract with the police union expired two years ago. But the mayor said, given how difficult negotiations are likely to be, it will probably be next year before a new one takes effect.