Chicago Mayor’s New Strategy To Control Crime: Lawsuits Against Street Gangs

Chicago is on pace for a record-setting number of murders, and the city’s mayor, Lori Lightfoot, has struggled to address the spike in violence, focusing, largely, on issues like illegal gun trafficking and income inequality — issues that predate the 15% rise in murders the city has seen over 2020, a year of similarly record-breaking violence.

On Tuesday, Lightfoot announced a new approach to curbing what appears to be a burgeoning gang war: an ordinance that would “allow the city to file lawsuits and go after gang members’ and leaders’ assets,” according to Chicago’s NBC affiliate.

“The ordinance, which the Chicago Tribune reports could allow fines as high as $10,000 for each offense and give courts the ability to seize ‘any property that is directly or indirectly used or intended for use in any manner to facilitate street gang-related activity,’ was introduced during a City Council meeting,” the outlet noted.

The idea is to “deprive the gangs of funds” by targeting gang leaders, Lightfoot said, when questioned whether the law would unfairly target low-income people of color living in gang-infested neighborhoods on the city’s south and west sides.