Illinois Quick Hits: Violent Crime down, arrest rates up in Chicago

Illinois Quick Hits: Violent Crime down, arrest rates up in Chicago

February 4, 2026/

By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
The Center Square

(The Center Square) – New research from the Illinois Policy Institute shows that violent crime declined in nearly 90% of Chicago’s neighborhoods last year.

The report also shows that 71% of the city’s communities reported higher arrest rates for violent crimes.

Following a national trend, the number of violent crimes being committed in Chicago hit a 10-year low in 2025, declining from a peak of nearly 30,000 in 2023 to 22,760 last year.

FUR FARM BILL

State Rep. Theresa Mah, D-Chicago, has introduced legislation that would end the establishment of new fur farms in Illinois.

House Bill 4777 would also require existing fur farms to obtain a license from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources by Jan. 1. The Animal Welfare Institute says mink, foxes and other animals on fur farms incubate diseases such as SARS-CoV-2 and H5N1, creating conditions for new variants to jump to humans.

CTU LEADER ON LEAVE

According to a member bulletin from the Chicago Teachers Union, CTU President Stacy Davis Gates is on temporary medical leave.

The bulletin said union vice president Jackson Potter will temporarily lead CTU along with recording secretary Vicki Kurzdlo and financial secretary Diane Castro. Gates is also president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers.

Event Calendar

Events

No events

Leave a Comment





Latest News Stories

Judicial manual pushes climate agenda, critics say

Judicial manual pushes climate agenda, critics say

By Emily Rodriguez and Andrew RiceThe Center Square The Federal Judicial Center, the judiciary’s research and education branch, provided a manual for judges based on policies preferential to climate activists,...
Palatine teacher fired over anti-BLM posts turns to SCOTUS

Palatine teacher fired over anti-BLM posts turns to SCOTUS

By Jonathan Bilyk | Legal NewslineThe Center Square A former Palatine High School teacher who was fired for posting anti-Black Lives Matter content to her personal Facebook page has asked...
Attorneys seek to remove prosecutors in Tyler Robinson trial

Attorneys seek to remove prosecutors in Tyler Robinson trial

By Dave MasonThe Center Square Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray stressed his decisions on defendant Tyler Robinson – including his intention to seek the death penalty if Robinson is convicted...
Plastic surgeons recommend delaying gender surgery until 19

Plastic surgeons recommend delaying gender surgery until 19

By Brett RowlandThe Center Square The American Society of Plastic Surgeons on Tuesday recommended delaying gender-related surgery for those 19 and younger, given low-quality data and emerging concerns about surgical...
Congress begins two-week battle over DHS funding bill

Congress begins two-week battle over DHS funding bill

By Thérèse BoudreauxThe Center Square U.S. lawmakers face a rocky path forward as they begin negotiations over the last remaining appropriations bill for fiscal year 2026. During the next two...
Chicago mayor defends ICE order, calls for progressive revenue from state taxpayers

Chicago mayor defends ICE order, calls for progressive revenue from state taxpayers

By Jim TalamontiThe Center Square Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has clarified his stance about the Cook County State’s Attorney’s support for his executive order directing police to refer federal immigration...
Unrealized Education Department cuts cost taxpayers up to $38 million

Unrealized Education Department cuts cost taxpayers up to $38 million

By Brett RowlandThe Center Square A watchdog report found that an unrealized plan to cut U.S. Department of Education staff cost taxpayers up to $38 million, as many workers were...
Illinois Quick Hits: Illinois to join WHO's alert network

Illinois Quick Hits: Illinois to join WHO’s alert network

By Jim Talamonti | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – Gov. J.B. Pritzker says Illinois is joining the World Health Organization’s Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network....
GOP candidates for Illinois governor challenge Pritzker on state finances

GOP candidates for Illinois governor challenge Pritzker on state finances

By Jim Talamonti | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – Gov. J.B. Pritzker has proposed ways for Illinois to better fund pensions, but one of the governor’s...
Date set for Clintons to appear before House committee

Date set for Clintons to appear before House committee

By Sarah Roderick-FitchThe Center Square Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will appear before the House Oversight Committee later this month, after being threatened with...
Lawmaker says adopting federal ‘no tax on tips’ would help workers

Lawmaker says adopting federal ‘no tax on tips’ would help workers

By Catrina BarkerThe Center Square A growing debate over how tipped income is taxed in Illinois has resurfaced as state Rep. Regan Deering, R-Decatur, introduced legislation aiming to align Illinois...
AGs request probe into climate activists’ influence on Federal Judicial Center

AGs request probe into climate activists’ influence on Federal Judicial Center

By Tate MillerThe Center Square Twenty-two state attorneys general sent a letter to chairmen of the House and Senate Judiciary Committee, requesting that an investigation concerning improper influence on judges...
Detroit judge among four charged with exploiting vulnerable adults

Detroit judge among four charged with exploiting vulnerable adults

By Elyse ApelThe Center Square Four Michiganders, including a sitting judge, have been charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with embezzlement-related charges. All four are residents of Detroit and...
Govt. funding bills pass House on razor-thin margins, head to Trump's desk

Govt. funding bills pass House on razor-thin margins, head to Trump’s desk

By Thérèse BoudreauxThe Center Square The U.S. House passed a critical government funding package along bipartisan lines in a nail-biter Tuesday vote, sending it to the president’s desk. Once President...
DOJ announces more arrests in St. Paul church protest, nine total

DOJ announces more arrests in St. Paul church protest, nine total

By Elyse ApelThe Center Square Federal officials have made nine arrests in connection with a protest that disrupted a Sunday morning church service in St. Paul on Jan. 18. That...