About this episode:
When the federal government sent officers from the Department of Homeland Security to Portland, Oregon earlier this month to help guard city buildings, the city erupted in chaos. So officials in Chicago were skeptical when President Trump announced on Wednesday he would also be sending federal law enforcement agents to their city.
Nearly 200 agents from the FBI, DEA, ATF and other agencies are being sent to the city to help address a recent uptick in violence. The President’s announcement came just one day after a mass shooting in Chicago that left 15 people wounded. Crime rates in Chicago have been down overall during the pandemic, but shootings and killings have been on the rise. Despite the progress made in recent years to stop crime, homicides are now up 51% compared to this time last year. City residents and leaders are grieving and looking for solutions. But are federal agents the answer?
Kimberly Foxx, the Cook County State’s Attorney in Chicago, is the county’s top prosecutor and one of the officials preparing to work with the federal agents on their way. Trymaine Lee talks with Foxx about her office’s plans ensure that the new federal efforts do not result in further violence in the city.
Find the transcript here.
Further Reading
- Trump says he is sending ‘hundreds’ of federal law enforcement officers to Chicago
- Chicago activists worried as federal officers head their way
- Federal agents coming to Chicago