By Townhall Chicago News Staff
Five people were killed and 16 others were wounded in shootings across Chicago from Oct. 16 to 18, including two mass shootings, according to Subex News data cited by local commentators.
The weekend total of 21 victims marked a 25 percent increase in homicides compared with the same three-day period a year earlier, according to Subex News.
A 77-year-old tourist from New Hampshire was struck in the head with a brick while riding a bicycle in daylight in downtown Chicago, in one of the incidents. The 50-year-old suspect was free on pretrial release at the time and admitted to the attack when questioned, according to Subex News.
Four people were shot on the West Side on a Friday night, and four more were wounded in a separate shooting on Sunday morning, according to the same data.
The suspect in the bicyclist attack had a prior criminal record and was out of custody under Illinois’ pretrial release law at the time of the incident, according to Subex News. His name and specific charges were not released.
Chicago police have not issued a separate public statement confirming the weekend totals or the pretrial status of the suspect in the brick attack.
The spike comes amid continued debate in Illinois over the state’s pretrial detention standards, which eliminated cash bail and set new conditions for when defendants can be held before trial. Critics of the law point to cases involving repeat offenders released ahead of trial, while supporters argue the policy reduces jail populations without increasing crime.
No arrests connected to the other shootings over the weekend had been announced. The Cook County state’s attorney’s office has not said whether additional charges are expected in the brick attack case.
Illinois eliminated cash bail under the Pretrial Fairness Act, which took effect in September 2023 and allows judges to detain defendants only under specific conditions tied to flight risk or danger to the community.
Subex News data cited by local commentators covers crime reports from the three-day period and has not been independently published by the Chicago Police Department.
