Homicides in Chicago rose 18 percent through the first two months of 2011 compared with the same period last year, according to preliminary statistics released today by the Chicago Police Department.
Through the end of February, 52 individuals were slain, eight more than for the same period in 2010, a year that saw the city’s lowest homicide total since 1965.
In addition, auto thefts increased by nearly 20 percent while criminal sexual assaults rose a little more than 4 percent, the department said.
Overall, crime in the city fell by 9 percent from last year, largely because of drops in aggravated batteries by 17 percent and arsons by 14.3 percent, the statistics showed. Burglaries also declined by nearly 6 percent.
The only number that seems to matter (and it only matters because you can't usually make a dead body disappear) is homicides. And now it's up 18%? Why do we get the feeling something isn't (or wasn't) being counted correctly for the last three years?