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The fatal shooting of a 40-year-old man on Wednesday brought the
Chicago Police Department's official 2012 homicide tally to 500. This is
the first time since 2008 that Chicago has recorded more than 500
homicides in one year. This is only the second time since 2003 that the
murder rate has been over 500
Police say
the victim Nathaniel T. Jackson was shot in the head while standing on
the sidewalk in front of a convenience store in the West Side
neighborhood of Austin.
According to the Tribune,
homicides are up 17 percent , and shootings are up 11 percent over last
year. Local activists with a different process of tallying violent
deaths (including police-involved deaths) had calculated 500 homicides on Dec. 15.
Year: Total Homicides
2001: 667
2002: 656
2003: 601
2004: 453
2005: 451
2006: 471
2007: 448
2008: 513
2009: 459
2010: 436
2011: 433
