After the dramatic rises in 2020 and 2021, Chicago carjackings will likely increase once again in 2022. This trend is six times more than the eight-year-old record.
Matt Rosenberg, the Wirepoints Senior editor, wrote that the data on Chicago carjacking in the past few years is a sad example of how a city can become ‘open’ to crime without any real deterrence or consequences. He analyzed the data for 2022.
Wirepoints data predict that Chicago will have 1,960 carjackings in 2022. This is an increase of sixfold from the previous year’s 1,848 carjackings.
Carjackings have seen a dramatic rise since 2020 when the trend began. The number of incidents reached 1,413, an increase of 603 from 2019.
These numbers are consistent with an overall rise in crime in Chicago and other American towns over the past two years. Experts blame pandemic-related lockdowns as the culprits. They also attribute the passive approach taken by police to the aftermath of social unrest and George Floyd’s murder in 2020.
“Certainly protests and riots erupted following George Floyd’s 2020 death, following a pattern similar past viral police incidents such as the deaths of Michael Brown and Freddie Gray.” Hannah Meyers, Manhattan Institute director for the policing initiative, described the ‘Ferguson Effect’ in which police respond to violent crime.
Wirepoints analysis of Chicago found similar problems and suggested that criminal penalties have contributed to their rise.
Rosenberg stated, “Chicago’s carjacking problem was a microcosm of what is wrong in the city. ”
This year’s data shows that 76% of carjackings in the city were considered “aggravated”. This means that either a weapon or a victim over 60 years old was used.
Despite an increase in carjackings, the city has made fewer arrests. In 2010-2019, the average arrest rate was 10%. It dropped to 6% in 2022. This rate is very close to the 2020 record of 5%.
Rosenberg stated that it was clear that the City of Chicago’s Political Leadership is unable to control this insidious crime. If there isn’t a major change in direction, it will only cause more problems for the city.
The Chicago Mayor’s Office and Chicago Police Department did not immediately respond to our request for comment.
