New report links strong families with less crime

A new research report reveals that strong families are associated with less crime in cities across Illinois.

The Illinois Policy Institute found that in Chicago, neighborhoods with more single-parent headed households face 226% higher violent crime rates and 436% higher homicide rates.

In cities across America, and on the streets of Chicago, the report finds public safety is greater in communities where the two-parent family is the dominant norm.

During a recent panel discussion, Rafael Mangual, a member of the Council on Criminal Justice, said the 2022 police shooting of a 13-year-old Black teen during a foot pursuit in Chicago has changed the landscape.

“The protests that ensued in the wake of that shooting led to real policy shifts on the ground where now Chicago police pursuit policies are different and foot pursuits and vehicle pursuits are significantly less likely to happen, and that changes the dynamics on the street,” said Mangual.

Crime has been a highly debated issue in the Chicago area and most likely will be a hot button topic during next year’s election. Gov. J.B. Pritzker recently told Crain’s Chicago Business that violent crime has been coming down in Chicago for the past three years. However, according to Chicago Police Department statistics, over the past four years murders have increased 23% and the number of shooting incidents increased 16%.

Mangual said the Black Lives Matter movement has had an impact on how police deal with crime, which has led to consequences.

“The protests not only zapped morale, but they drove an enormous amount of policy shifts,” said Mangual. “Those policy shifts created the conditions for the crime increases.”

According to the Illinois Policy Institute, Chicago Police Department arrest rates were the lowest in a decade last year. Less than 12% of the more than 238,000 crime reports resulted in arrests.

The Illinois State Police provide a public website to view crime statistics in Illinois. The “Crime in Illinois Online” website is part of the Illinois Uniform Crime Reporting Program, which serves as the state’s digital storage for crime statistics to provide information for use in law enforcement.