Police pursue leads in Chicago Lawn mass shooting, mayor sets bold crime reduction goal

CHICAGO - Police continue to investigate Monday’s mass shooting in the Chicago Lawn neighborhood that left three people dead and five wounded. 

Authorities have not yet identified the victims, and no arrests have been made.

As the city grapples with the violence, Mayor Brandon Johnson is setting an ambitious goal for 2025: reducing homicides to fewer than 500, a benchmark Chicago has not reached in nearly a decade.

In his first speech at the City Club of Chicago since taking office, Johnson highlighted a drop in violent crime across the city. 

Homicides, shootings, carjackings, robberies and sexual assaults are all down compared to last year, he said. Chicago has recorded 532 homicides so far in 2024, compared to 617 in 2023.

The mayor credited targeted investments in communities for the progress, pointing to the Austin neighborhood as an example. He noted that hiring young residents in the area has coincided with a decline in crime in the nearby 15th and 25th police districts.