Teen performer at Obama inaugural events shot dead

Guns are BANNED in Chicago. Shows how successful banning guns is. With a ban on guns only the criminals have the guns. Good going Chicago. (murder capital of the U.S.)

@Jasser

Did you know that people can buy guns in other cities and go to Chicago with them ? I hope someday someone knocks some common sense into NRA supporters, smh

In Chicago, gangs routinely and often indiscriminately open fire. Mayor Rahm Emanuel and McCarthy are pushing for tougher local, state and national gun laws and longer prison sentences for offenders.

How about doing something proactive, like sweeping the gang-infested areas with SWAT teams to draw their fire, and then sending in drones to bomb everything that moves within a radius of 50 meters? Heck, if it works in North Waziristan it ought to do the job in South Chicago.

Jasser, you can't ban guns in one city that's surrounded by areas full of guns and expect it to have any effect, because guns are just too easy to get.

I do, however agree that banning guns is a bad idea. Restrict ammunition and encourage the arms industry to make up for profit on volume by increasing the price per unit. If a single bullet costs $100 then you'll quickly find the gang members won't fire off a hundred rounds to scare someone, and the guns and ammo industry will crack down on illegal ammunition manufacturers INCREDIBLY fast since it cuts into their profits!

Jasser, you can't ban guns in one city that's surrounded by areas full of guns and expect it to have any effect, because guns are just too easy to get.

Did you know that people can buy guns in other cities and go to Chicago with them ? I hope someday someone knocks some common sense into NRA supporters, smh

Well here is a question and an idea, what is stopping them, the police, from doing check points on the roads leading into Chicago to make sure such guns don't make it into the city?

Police do check points all the time to capture drunk drivers, why not do the same for guns?

One thing that has to be addressed, I noticed this very easily when I was in Chicago for an entire month back in 2011, is that the south and west areas of Chicago are basically owned by the gangs and there really isn't any value or respect for human life in those areas of Chicago. They have to really clamp down or change that culture because until that culture changes Chicago is not going to get better. New York City got better because of a change in culture when it came to how they treat gangs, drugs, illegally owned firearm but really just petty crime in general as well. They just stopped accepting the lack of respect that was being shown in the city.

Oakland is the same way as Chicago, the gangs own that city and they just don't have any respect for anyone.

No living it is against the US 4th amendment to do random searches. The police need reasonable cause to stop someone and do a search. The Americans fought a revolution against the British and searching without reasonable cause was one of the reasons.

The Americans fought a revolution against the British and searching without reasonable cause was one of the reasons.

And now they're fighting anarchy against heavily armed street gangs that rule large swaths of urban turf because they know they can hide behind the Bill of Rights.

No living it is against the US 4th amendment to do random searches. The police need reasonable cause to stop someone and do a search. The Americans fought a revolution against the British and searching without reasonable cause was one of the reasons.

Good point. Sobriety check points have been found to be constitutional though so if there is a way to do these types of check points for firearms it should be explored.

That's just so sad, the waste of a beautiful life for no reason, for nothing.

The real sad thing is that there is a culture of no snitching in these communities and as such the killer will never be found because the people that live in the area of the killer will not give him up.

Even if you ban guns universally, these things will still happen. It does not matter if you ban guns in one jurisdiction and not in the ones surrounding it. They would still be mass produced in an underground black-market. As well as being distributed out by Govt into he hands of criminals like what happen in the "Fast and Furious" scandal of the Obama admin. Gun control simply does not work unless applied against Govt.

Even if you ban guns universally, these things will still happen

AiserX, this is the pathetic "do nothing" argument.

The objective of any action will be to REDUCE the number of occurrences, not eliminate them.

Chicago police said Hadiya Pendleton, who performed in a marching band at this month’s inauguration,

Seems a bit sensationalist to say she performed in his inauguration. There were 1000's of people in this pageant.

Still tragic though - too many lives lost to gun violence in US.

I lived in that area (U of Chicago, Hyde Park) for a short time. There's no way I would leave the campus on foot in that neighborhood, you could routinely hear gun shots almost every night. All the guys in my lab have been mugged on campus at least once (and there is huge security on campus). One guy in our department was shot dead one night by mistake. One friend of mine escaped a rape attempt, it was noon, near the train station. USA may be the greatest country in the world, but they have to do something about South Chicago, that slum is as dangerous as Afghanistan or Syria.

USA may be the greatest country in the world, May is the operative word.

now is the time to remove the guns, america!

Chicago: the place with some of the most stringent gun control, but most gun-related deaths. Well done.

Instead of making useless laws banning assault weapons, why not try and do something to try to decrease gang violence? Oh, yeah, right, because that isn't the flavor of the month flag to fly right now.

It is the culture of the residents that is the problem.

The problem of gang and criminal violence is intractable and deeply rooted in those areas where it is rife; no one really knows what to do about it. We have good evidence to suggest that where opportunity for youth provides options that are better than gangs or crime their involvement in it drops off, but no programs have ever been sustained successfully enough to see lasting turn-arounds. When the economy improves, there's a drop in such crime, but in areas with institutionalized crime and gang culture, the impact in negligible.

Band aids may make us feel better, but until we really figure out what to do, and care enough about doing it - recognizing that it will be a long, hard road and require on-going commitment and sacrifice; nothing will get better, and may get worse. Many of these areas the police no longer even bother going into anymore, or fear going into. And those who can leave, do so. There is no genuine investment in such areas - they are left to rot. Whole tracts of Detroit, for example, are ghost towns.

Police I know, who have worked in such areas, say these things happen all the time; media attention waxes and wanes over it as a bell weather issue strikes the public fancy, but it hardly alters the day to day conditions, because it's the social problems that are at the root of the matter - and so far, these have stymied even the smartest of us to figure out - and by that, I mean figure out a feasible, actionable way of changing things for the better.

Clean up the gangs, clean up the worst of the problem.

Most homicides in the USA are gang related. Gang members do not get guns legally hence the restriction of guns in Chicago has enabled them go unchecked. Does anyone really think a criminal will let anyone know he has a gun or buys one legally? Guns are much easier to purchase in the underground market than in a gun store. I used to work as a head nurse in what was called the gun shot capital of the world East Saint Louis Illinois. Now Chicago has that title and yes it is safer in Afghanistan than in Chicago.

In Chicago only criminals have guns due to the rediculous gun control laws.. making Chicago the murder capital of the USA. Has a lot to do with demographics also... what a sht hole. A lot of gang activity.. they need concealed carry laws for the law abiding to reduce this type of thing.

America is a violent society. If you understand that, then everything falls into place.

Damn video games!

Now if only every one of the people in this group had been packing assault rifles and multiple clips of ammo. I wonder whether the outcome would have been any different??

(sarcasm off...)

What a waste. :-(

Tragic and needless waste of life. Really sad.

@realdoll

Has a lot to do with demographics also

For example?

" Has a lot to do with demographics also For example?"

Check the data of those involved on the trigger, and majority of victims.

She was such a beautiful young lady with a full life ahead of her, and the same age as my daughter. I can't imagine losing my child in the same manner. I would go insane.

Jasser: Guns are BANNED in Chicago. Shows how successful banning guns is. With a ban on guns only the criminals have the guns. Good going Chicago. (murder capital of the U.S.)

You can actually see the glimmer of excitement in a gun supporter's eyes when he finds incredibly small pieces of the world where there is a gun ban and high gun violence. He's actually able to trick himself into not thinking about the hundreds of countries with strict gun laws and very low gun deaths. It's kind of like me saying that I have a gun ban in my house and no one has died so far....so obviously bans work.

Another cruel waste of a young life thanks to firearms.

America needs an enema.

maybe a death penalty for those caught using guns would stem part of the problem. an out right US wide ban would also help and for the love of whatever god you gunning loving idiots pray to, get it through your head that while you bitch and moan about terrorists outside of the US are trying to kill Americans and ruin you way of life, YOUR gun loving society gets more Americans killed within its borders by other Americans. THE U.S. of A IS BROKEN and once you realize that and that guns are not the solution but the whole fearking problem which breeds the gang culture and John Waynes of the the yahoos then you might start down the road to saving people like this innocent girl that was killed. Any thing short of that is full of BS excuses and you need to give your heads a serious shake.

He said the police suspect that the gunman may be a member of a gang that considers the park its turf and that he mistook somebody in the group as someone from an encroaching rival gang. If you know anything about life and DEATH in the USA, having some scum gang member thinking you are "claiming their turf" basically means they are gonna blow your head off, not like here in Japan where the yakuza may drop a bullet in your mail box and that makes the evening news for Japan, right?? RIP poor young girl in messed up Chicago, USA

It's not an either/or solution. It'd take many little solutions that must be implemented side-by-side simultaneously.

So sad, so sad. Unbelievable, but sadly enough, believable.

Chicago has weak gun laws- they have little effective punishment. Like everywhere else with gun laws -its crippled by the gun lobby.

@surf

Checked before posting, hence the question.

She comes from a reasonably well off family - at least to say she isn't poor, lets call that "middle class" for now. Her school is a "silver medal" grade school. She was an honor student. The school is in a suburb with neighbours like Ann Marie Lipinski, the Obama's, Mohammed Ali - maybe these could be upper class? The killer is not identified (yet). So exactly what demographic means she deserved this?

@the passage,

Which demographic of the shooters(majority) is the issue, not of this particular victim. Gang members prowl wealthy neighborhoods as well as their own.

@surf - no good Fudged response, but expected that. So basically Chicago is a no go zone for anyone?

Passage log -supplemental

Which demographic of the shooters(majority) is the issue, not of this particular victim.

So which demographic is the shooter from? Do you actually know?

Yep it just keeps going to show that obviously too many people are still not getting the message about the "right" to bear arms in defense of the country... I still don't own a gun, nor see the need to get one yet.

This is a perfect example of why restricting gun ownership for law abiding U.S. citizens has no positive effect on crime.

RR

For a city with some of the toughest gun laws in this country, Chicago has some of the worst gun violence in the nation. This is because they have a major gang problem in Chicago and gang members -- as well as other criminals -- do not follow gun laws.

The idea that more gun laws are going to do anything to reduce gun violence is pure fiction. What is needed is enforcing the gun laws we already have on the books and making the punishments for violating them more meaningful.

If caught with a gun during the commission of a crime, it should be automatically life in prison without possibly of parole. After all, the only reason to carry a gun during the commission of a crime is the intent to use it. If a death occurs when a gun is used during the commission of a crime, then an automatic death sentence is imposed on all those involved in the crime. And the sentence is not carried out in 20 years, but within a year of conviction. If gang bangers and other criminals knew they were facing these stiff penalties, they would think twice before carrying a gun.

RR

RomeoRII: The idea that more gun laws are going to do anything to reduce gun violence is pure fiction.

Well said. We need to get rid of guns entirely then we'll see a massive drop in gun related violence over time.

If a death occurs when a gun is used during the commission of a crime, then an automatic death sentence is imposed on all those involved in the crime.

Statistics show that the death sentence doesn't deter criminals. I thought you'd be big on that stat.

Gun Violence is allowed due to it's postive effect of population control. This is sarcasam. I definitely won't be visiting Chicago... or Tijuana either.

Hey San Diegan, how about visiting LOGAN HEIGHTS?? Kind of like a little Chicago and TJ, right??

Gun violence is very much an American culture and not because of poverty. The whole of the so-called third world is so poor, but the people there don't go on killing sprees because they are poor. In many countries to own a gun is a privilege and not a right - that is why America is exceptional.

Liberals can't blame the NRA for this one. They are nonexistent in Chicago. So are guns. They are completely banned there except in the hands of police.

So, the only possiblities are:

1.) Stringent gun control works, no one has guns but the police so the police shot the girl.

2.) Stringent gun control works. The police didn't do it, no one else has guns so the girl wasn't shot and this story is a complete lie for propoganda purposes.

3.) Stringent gun control doesn't work. A complete ban on guns did not prevent criminals from getting a gun and killing the girl.

RR

the people there don't go on killing sprees because they are poor.

If these folks had legitimate jobs they'd be too busy making & spending money to shoot at each other. Nah, that's a bad idea. Paying people to actuallly work goes against the U.S. liberals' agenda. Their way of making our society's leeches wait around until the end of each month to get free handouts for doing nothing is so much better, isn't it?

RR

As sad this loss of life is this story would just be another local story had it not been for the timing-These Gangs are every bit as brutal ,or even more so than Mafia style criminals in that innocents aren't randomly murdered in playgrounds by them Until the government ,on a state & federal level go to all out war on streetgangs places like Camden N.J.,Detroit,Michigan& Chicago Illinois will remain Hell on Earth for the working poor.Nobody needs Uzis or Kalishnikovs to protect their home!

Chicago has the equivalent of two Sandy Hook tragedies a MONTH, and it flies under the radar. I wonder why... does the inconvenient truth of who the victims (and shooters) are make the media step lightly?

As an aside, I wonder how many of Chicago's 42 homocides were committed with "assault rifles".

The fact is, if you aren't involved in the illegal drug trade, and stay away from people who are, the US is a pretty safe country. The overall violent crime rate is far lower than places like the UK.

RomeoRII: Stringent gun control doesn't work. A complete ban on guns did not prevent criminals from getting a gun and killing the girl.

Looking around the world I see lots of places with strict gun laws and a low death rate from guns. Your logic works only if you ignore a vast majority of the samples.

Vast Right-Wing Conspirator: Chicago has the equivalent of two Sandy Hook tragedies a MONTH, and it flies under the radar. I wonder why... does the inconvenient truth of who the victims (and shooters) are make the media step lightly?

You already know the answer. Single children die every day and it's not national news. If 20 are murdered at once in one spot is becomes national news. This is just another example of a pro-gun supporter getting wrapped up in his own thinking that he misses the obvious.

The fact is, if you aren't involved in the illegal drug trade, and stay away from people who are, the US is a pretty safe country.

Without women the breast cancer rate would be close to 0. But these people actually exist so we have to take them into account and look at the whole picture, not just lop them off and say the rest are doing fine.

Sorry, I don't see the connection between the trade in narcotics and breast cancer. Perhaps you could enlighten me.

You are right in a very narrow sense though. Strict gun control CAN lead to fewer deaths from guns. No question. However, there ARE other consequences, such as higher rates of murder with other kinds of weapons. Such as higher rates of other violent crimes. We have to take them all into account and look at the whole picture, not just lop off "gun deaths" and ignore the rest of the picture.

Let's be brutally honest here. Black kids getting shot in the inner city, one at a time, either as innocent bystanders or in gang/drug related crime, not news. White kids getting shot in the 'burbs in a group, news.

Chicago has had significant gang-related violence for quite some time. Enacting gun control laws has been ineffective to say the least. The Justice Department has some input.

" The US Justice Department is now working with state and local officials to apply the best ideas. One of the most popular techniques is to identity the small percentage of gang members who are instigators of violence and then change their behavior, either by using peer pressure or offering them positive alternatives to gang life, often with the help of an ex-gang member mentor.

But even that approach can be shortlived if gang-infested communities don’t have one key actor: local clergy.

In the 1990s, Boston pioneered the approach of having black church leaders cooperate with police to patrol streets, work with delinquent youth, and enlist congregations in crime fighting. In weekly meetings with police, for example, clergy can learn about current hot spots in gang tension and then pass on that information in church meetings.

After adding this moral and spiritual component to battling gangs, crime fell 60 percent in Boston in the ’90s."

Morality is a missing ingredient in Chicago, and please note the general article "a" preceding "ingredient ".

This is so sad and one wonders why Americans kill their fellow men they are not even at war with. Is there an overdose of freedom? Is it the constitution? Is it the gun advocates? Is it only the misguided? Is it a lack of enforcement of existing laws? Is it the lack of political, social will to do something about it? Too many questions, too many tears.

Presto, the answer can be found in a few places: drugs, fatherless boys, lack of moral guidance.