Over the Labor Day weekend, eight people were killed and 50 others were wounded in dozens of shootings in Chicago, where President Donald Trump has used crime to justify a greater federal presence on the city’s streets.
The toll highlights Chicago’s ongoing battle with gun violence and reveals a sobering reality: an increase in shootings over summer holiday weekends, particularly on the South and West sides.
This time, the violence was more deadly than it was on Labor Day last year, when seven people were killed and more than 20 injured.
When asked about sending National Guard troops to Chicago, Trump responded, “We’re going in,” but added, “I didn’t say when.”
“We have the right to do it,” he explained.
Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, both Democrats, have repeatedly stated that there is no reason for Trump to send the National Guard, which is currently stationed in the District of Columbia to combat crime, immigration, and homelessness.
“We have crime on the streets,” Pritzker admitted last week. “Any person who is killed or injured is a victim of a crime, and we should be addressing the issues for them. And we do this every day. However, the method is to use police officers rather than troops.
According to preliminary police data, 58 people were shot in 37 separate incidents between Friday night and Monday night in the nation’s third-largest city.
The majority of survivors were in good or fair condition, but several were listed as serious or critical, including a 17-year-old boy. In most cases, there was no suspect in custody.
Separately, the Trump administration plans to expand immigration operations in Chicago. Kristi Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security, confirmed plans to increase the presence of federal agents.
Over the weekend, Johnson signed an order stating that Chicago police will not work with military personnel on police patrols or civil immigration enforcement.
The mayor stated that police officers will not be “deputized to do traffic stops and checkpoints for the president,” and that the Trump administration is “out of control.”
Violent crime has decreased in recent years in Chicago, which has a population of 2.7 million, but it remains a persistent issue in some neighborhoods.
According to the University of Chicago Crime Lab, some areas have 68 times the number of homicides as others.
The city had 573 homicides last year, or 21 per 100,000 residents, according to the Rochester Institute of Technology. Other cities experienced higher rates in 2024. Chicago’s rate was down 25% from 2020.
Chicago police provide weekly crime statistics online. The department reports that there have been 278 murders this year through August, a 31% decrease from the same eight-month period in 2024.
