Reducing violent crimes committed by youth should be the top priority for each of the candidates for mayor of Chicago, as today’s criminal youth is often tomorrow’s hardened adult criminal.
Armed robberies and armed carjackings have become daily occurrences in Chicago, and many of them are committed by those under 18. While no one seems to have exact numbers for carjackings committed by juveniles, some estimate that they account for nearly 50% of these crimes over the last three years — enough to make average citizens wary. There were 1,413 carjackings in 2020, 1,849 in 2021 and 1,655 in 2022, according to data from the City of Chicago. Carjackings were down in 2022, but fear is not.
