Statehouse bill would put repeat gun offenders in prison longer
The refrain is heard almost as often as the fatal gunshots: The way to reduce Chicago's gun violence is tougher prison sentences for repeat gun offenders, keeping them off the streets and decreasing the city's mounting death toll.
That idea, pushed by the mayor, police superintendent and others, is shifting to the Capitol in Springfield, where legislators will consider how to balance law and order with finding alternatives to imprisoning young blacks and other minorities.
In that building, in the same Senate seat where Barack Obama launched his political career and focused on racial profiling issues, Democrat Kwame Raoul plans to propose legislation next month to impose longer sentences for defendants who previously committed a gun-related crime.
It's a measure that has Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson's backing, especially with the city topping 700 homicides a year after seeing 468. The state's past attempts to strengthen such penalties have been turned down, met by opponents who worry it'd further incarceration rates in the predominantly black neighborhoods hardest hit by violence and doesn't address the root cause of readily available illegal guns. The opponents have called for more comprehensive solutions that go beyond law enforcement.
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