Chicago's top cop says 76 cops were shot or shot at, over 12,000 gun recovered in 2021

CHICAGO - After another year of near-record crime, Chicago Police Supt. David Brown stepped up to defend his department Thursday. 

Brown held his year-end news conference to tout his department's accomplishments over this very difficult year for crime, and set out some goals for what will hopefully be a more peaceful 2022.

"No day is the same for law enforcement," Brown said. "Their actions are a reminder that no matter the task, no matter the risk, CPD officers dedicated themselves to doing the most good for the people of this great city."

Brown said 76 officers were either shot or shot at over the past year. 

"Every attack on an officer highlights that every day Chicago police officers put their lives on the line to protect the people of Chicago," Brown said.

2021 was a deadly year, indeed, with nearly 800 reported homicides. 

Of those, Brown says police made arrests in 392 of them--the most cleared homicides in nearly two decades, with a clearance rate of just under 50 percent.

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According to Brown, CPD officers took 12,034 guns off the street, which included 701 assault weapons and 455 ghost guns--the homemade, unlicensed, untraceable kind involved in the murder of a 71-year-old man in Chinatown earlier this month.  

Brown also reports officers recovered $500 million in street value worth of narcotics, and made 1400 carjacking-related arrests.  

With numbers that high, he stressed that the police department can't make the city safe on its own. 

"Coach, tutor, or mentor a young person," Brown said. "Everyone has a role to play in our public safety."

Brown says his goal for 2022 is to build more trust between citizens. 

He says in 2021, there were 500,000 positive community interactions recorded. 

The goal for 2022 is to TRIPLE that number, up to 1.5 million.