From the Chicago Tribune:
The [Chicago] impact zones, established in February 2013 after a violent 2012, comprise just 3 percent of the city’s geographic area but account for one-fifth of its violent crime, according to the department.
From the Sun Times:
In March 2013, the department began assigning foot patrol offers to the high-crime areas. McCarthy said feedback from the communities has been positive, as have the results. Since Feb. 1, 2013, in the impact zones, murders are down nearly 50 percent, shootings are down 43 percent and overall crime is down 26 percent, doubling and outpacing citywide reductions, he said.
How is the different than NYC? Hopefully, one would think, the cops in Chicago are doing something other than feeling quota pressure to write citations.
In numbers, though, we’re not talking many cops. 360 officers in total. 140 on bike 220 on foot. That’s 18 cops per impact zone, which means about 4 or 5 on duty 16 hours a day. The zones seem rationallysized. The few I checked are about one-quarter to one-half square mile (or 30 to 55 blocks).
Peter,
There is an interesting story at chicagomag.com about the Chicago police department juking their murder stats. Apparently they have been reclassifying certain murders as "non-criminal death investigations".
If you can't trust murder stats are there any that are reliable?
From Canada
I read that. The fudging they may be doing is more a political thing. So they can say "lower than last year!" But it's pretty insignificant statistically, something like 5%.
Still, I've *never* heard about attempts to fudge murder stats (outside of The Wire, of course), so it is an interesting story, regardless.
Not last weekend, however:
chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-2-men-seriously-wounded-in-south-side-shooting-20140420,0,3822278.story