Best Week on Record

For those of you that live in Chicago and do your daily commutes on the trains or busses, you probably pick up the RedEye to pass the time on the way to your destination. If so, you most likely notice that each Thursday, they publish a map showing all the homicides in the city for the week along with the dates, addresses, and causes of death. This past week there was only 1 homicide in the City of Chicago.

As quoted from the article above, "RedEye has never published a homicide map with just one victim since the newspaper began printing homicide maps in February 2009." There was a six day span between the last two homicides, which is recently unheard of in Chicago.

19 homicides have been recorded so far for the month of January 2011, just one less than least year with a few days to go.

While it is unfortunate that there was even one death, it is exciting to see such a quiet week.

Here is a link to the RedEye Homicide Tracker.

Most Dangerous Neighborhood in the Country

Please bear in mind that this statistic is according to WalletPop, which describes itself as a friendly consumer finance site who's mission is to help you manage your money and understand how the important stories of the day affect your wallet. This particular article "25 Most Dangerous Neighborhoods 2010" is tagged with the key words home, insurance, and real estate. So believe what you will about the accuracy of the information, but regardless it is still an interesting tid bit.

According to this article Chicago hold the #1 most dangerous neighborhood in the country.
(We are also on the list at #18 for another area as well.)



The bounderies for the area are Kinzie Street to the north, Damen to the east, Washington Boulevard to the south and Western to the west. The statistics for the area are as follows:

Predicted annual violent crimes: 297
Violent crime rate (per 1,000): 257.72
Chances of becoming a victim here (in one year): 1 in 4*

Neighborhood median housing value: $323,216
School District Rating: 12%

Not one of the 168 people who were killed in the City of Chicago over the summer months was killed in this area.

Here's the info for #18:



The bounderies for this area are as follows: Pershing Road to the north, State Street to the east, 43rd Street to the south, and La Salle to the west.

Predicted annual violent crimes: 202
Violent crime rate (per 1,000): 93.04
Chances of becoming a victim here (in one year): 1 in 11*

Neighborhood median housing value: Not available
School District Rating: 12%

Only one of the 168 people killed in the City of Chicago this summer was killed in this area. His name was Bennie Madison.

*(Average in Chicago: 1 in 17)

No Parking Zones

As I was photographing this summer, I began to notice that many of the locations where people were killed in vehicles were in no parking zones, either in front of fire hydrants or in the yellow curbed areas at the end of most blocks in Chicago. All of them were killed while sitting idly in their vehicles. Most were accompanied by other people. After taking a closer look at these statistics, I found that 18 people were killed in vehicles this summer. Of those 18, 3 were shot and killed while driving and 6 were parked in front of their own homes. Of the remaining 8, 6 of them were sitting in a car in an illegal parking zone. The conclusion I came to is that those victims were waiting for something or someone and pulled into the empty spot on the street in the meantime. That would explain why so many were not only parked illegally, but also sitting in their cars. I don't really know what this information means, but I do thinkn it is an interesting statistic to add to the discoveries I made this while photographing this project.

To see the locations of those killed in no parking zones, click on the "No Parking" label on the side bar.

George Esco, 57

On July 10th at about 8 p.m., George Esco was victim of battery on the sidewalk at 5345 West North Avenue. He was declared dead seven weeks later on August 28th at 12:30 a.m. at Holy Cross Hospital. Following an autopsy, the medical examiner's office determined his death was a homicide, and that he died of head injuries from blunt head trauma in an assault.

Photographing at the site

Terrance Jackson, 34

Terrance Jackson was on the street at 4458 West Wilcox Street in the West Garfield Park neighborhood at about 1:10 a.m. when two male assailants approached and fired shots, striking him in the chest. He was taken in critical condition with multiple gunshot wounds to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 1:46 a.m.

Photographing at the site

Jennifer Alvarado, 20s

Jennifer Alvarado was shot and killed while in a vehicle in the Southwest Side's Little Village neighborhood. Jennifer was a passenger in the front seat of the vehicle as it was headed west on West 24th Street about 5:30 p.m. on September 6th when another vehicle pulled up at about 2718 West 24th Street and fired shots.

Photographing at the site

Theresa Russell, 23

Theresa Russell was found shot to death in the Englewood neighborhood on September 4th. Police officers found her at 6435 South Morgan Street about 2:50 a.m. with a gunshot wound to the back.

Photographing at the site

Alonso Villarreal, 32 & Roberto Rivera, 30 & Noel Casares, 25 & Luis Santillian, 30

At about 8:30 p.m. on September 2nd, four men were found shot to death in the garage of 6128 South Kildare Avenue in Chicago's West Lawn neighborhood. They were found face down on the garage floor with their hands, feet and mouths bound with duct tape. All of them appeared to have been shot in the head. "Multiple weapons" were found at the scene. The motive for the slayings appear to be drug related.

Photographing at the site

Jeremy Brooks, 17

The shooting that killed Jeremy Brooks happened about 2:15 p.m. on September 2nd in an alley at 743 East 78th Street in the Chatham neighborhood on Chicago's South Side. He shot several times by one of two people who confronted him. After he was shot, he staggered behind a church near 78th and Cottage Grove and was taken to Jackson Park Hospital by ambulance. Police turned out in force in the neighborhood, with a swarm of officers in the area with M4 rifles, because Jeremy was the younger brother of a top member of the Gangster Disciples and police feared a retaliation shooting.

Photographing at the site

Johnnie Dyer, 38

Johnnie Dyer was standing outside 3017 West 5th Avenue in the East Garfield Park neighborhood shortly before midnight on September 1st when someone approached and shot him several times. He was pronounced dead at 12:38 a.m. at Mount Sinai Hospital.

Photographing at the site

Jovanni Gudino, 24

Chicago police and paramedics responded about at 10 p.m. on Tuesday September 1st 6719 South Tripp Avenue where Jovanni Gudino was shot in the head in a vehicle outside his home in the West Lawn neighborhood. Jovanni was a passenger inside a vehicle when two male assailants approached and at least one shot him. He was pronounced dead at 3:12 p.m. the following day at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn.

Photographing at the site

Marcus Marshall, 20 & Shawntell Harris, 21

Marcus Marshall and Shawntell Harris were killed when two men entered a South Side liquor store at 5701 South State Street and opened fire. Marcus was shot in the head and chest about 12:40 a.m. Shawntell was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital with a gunshot wound to his head and succumbed to his injuries two days later.

Photographing at the site

Paul Harris, 25

Police and paramedics responded shortly after 1:30 a.m. on August 31st to 1101 West Madison Street and found Paul Harris lying on the sidewalk with a gunshot wound to his torso. Police said Paul was shot across the street from a bar following an argument with an unknown assailant who took out a gun and shot him. They say that Paul had not been in the bar prior to the shooting. He was pronounced dead at 2:13 a.m. at Stroger Hospital.

Photographing at the site

Anthony Carter, 18

On the night of August 31st, Anthony Carter was standing outside his West Garfield Park home at 4043 West Jackson Boulevard, waiting for his grandmother to return from a neighborhood store with snacks. As his grandmother approached with potato chips and pop, she heard the sound of eight or nine gunshots fired. Anthony was shot multiple times in the back. When police officers arrived at the scene they found him unresponsive.

Photographing at the site

David Johnson, 31

On August 29th, David Johnson was found dead sitting in a vehicle with a gunshot wound to his head. The slaying happened shortly after 7 p.m. at 1542 West 51st Street in the city's Back of the Yards neighborhood. David was parked in a vehicle when someone approached, pulled out a gun and shot him. He was pronounced dead at 7:37 p.m. at Stroger Hospital.

Photographing at the site

Adolfo Guijardo-Soria, 17

on August 28th at about 11:45 p.m. in Gage Park, Adolfo Guijardo-Soria, was standing outside during a block party at 5801 South Campbell Avenue when he was shot in the head. He was taken in critical condition to Mount Sinai Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 3:50 a.m.

Photographing at the site

Darrell McKinney, 15

Darrell McKinney was on a sidewalk at 956 North Harding Avenue at about 8:40 p.m. at a block party in the Humboldt Park neighborhood when he was hit by crossfire when suspect opened fire on another man during a foot chase. Darrell died a short time later. Police believe that Darrell was not the intended target.

Photographing at the site

Wesley Taylor, 23

At about 6:30 p.m. on August 28th, Wesley Taylor and another man were at a block party in the West Garfield Park neighborhood when they were followed by several people into an alley and got into a fight. Wesley was found lying in the alley at 4411 West Wilcox Street with several gun shot wound. He was pronounced dead at the emergency room at Mount Sinai Hospital.

Photographing at the site

Maria Martinez, 37

An autopsy showed that Maria Martinez, whose body was found burned in a West Side alley on Saturday morning August 28th, was beaten to death. Officials determined that she had been assaulted and ruled her death a homicide due to evidence of blunt head trauma. Maria's body was found when officers were called to 2847 West Washington Avenue at about 4:30 a.m. After being beaten, she was doused with a flammable substance and ignited.

Photographing at the site

Edward Ramos, 24

At about 12:10 a.m. on August 28th, police responded to a call for a man with a gunshot wound to his chest at the man's home at 7023 West Grand Avenue in the Northwest Side Montclare neighborhood. Reports say that three males kicked in a side door to his house and then fired shots, hitting Edward Ramos in the chest. Edward was pronounced dead at 5:36 a.m. at Gottlieb Memorial Hospital.

Photographing at the site

Luis Perez, 18

On Wednesday, August 25th at about 4:40 p.m. police responded to 5702 South Sawyer Avenue in the Gage Park neighborhood, where they found Luis Perez with a gunshot wound to his right cheek. Reports indicate that Luis was standing on the street when a group approached in a car, shouted gang slogans and shot him. Luis had been taken in critical condition to Advocate Christ Medical Center, but was pronounced dead on Friday at 4:10 a.m.

Photographing at the site

Laverick Marshall, 29

At about 11:30 p.m. on August 25th, police officers responded to a call of a large crowd fighting at 6358 South Martin Luther King Drive in the Woodlawn neighborhood. When the crowd was cleared, Laverick Marshall was found shot in the back. He was taken to the hospital where he later died.

Photographing at the site

Debra Haywood-Hughes, 44

Debra Haywood-Hughes was found stabbed to death on the morning of August 25th at 3:41 a.m. inside her residence at 7041 South Martin Luther King Drive on the South Side in the city's Park Manor neighborhood. Police said the stabbing was domestically related.

Photographing at the site

Tyrone Clark, 27

Tyrone Clark was shot and killed early on the morning of August 24th near his residence in the South Side's Back of the Yards neighborhood. The shooting happened about 4:40 a.m. at 1441 West 54th Street. He was pronounced dead at 5:20 a.m. at Mt. Sinai Hospital. Police said Clark had been shot in the back.

Photographing at the site the first time & the second time

Linton Goldsmith, 33

Linton Goldsmith was driving a van at about 1:00 a.m. on August 24th when he was shot in the face and killed. Reports say he was driving when another vehicle pulled up and someone inside fired shots into the van. The van struck a tree and flipped over but the five other people inside were not injured. Linton was found unresponsive in the vehicle at 8020 South Jeffery Avenue in the South Shore neighborhood on Chicago's South Side.

Photographing at the site

Kirk McCullough, 45

Kirk McCullough, was found shot to death on August 23rd in West Garfield Park near The Taste Bud Banquet Hall and Restaurant where he was a bouncer. He was found sitting in his car at 4422 West Madison Street with a gunshot wound to the back of his head about 1:15 a.m. He was pronounced dead at 1:28 a.m. at Stroger Hospital. Police said he had gang affiliations.

Photographing at the site

Ronnie Peterson, 23

Ronnie Peterson was found shot in the head in his car in the late afternoon on Sunday August 22nd at 5094 West Monroe Street in the Austin neighborhood. Reports say that someone inside a vehicle that pulled up next to his car fired several shots at him. He was pronounced dead at Mt. Sinai Hospital at 5:55 p.m the next day.

Photographing at the site

Donzel Swanigan, 30

At about 1:55 a.m. on August 22nd, police responded to a battery in progress and found Donzel Swanigan dead in a vacant lot near a large house party at 349 South Kostner Avenue in the West Garfield Park neighborhood on the West Side. He was fatally shot in the neck.

Photographing at the site

Julio Castrumita, 22

At about 2:10 a.m. on August 21st, police responded 2839 West Pershing Road in the Brighton Park neighborhood and found two people shot. One of the men, Julio Castrumita was shot in the head. He was pronounced dead at 4:19 a.m. at Mount Sinai Hospital.

Photographing at the site the first time & the second time & the third time & the fourth time

Bennie Madison, 39

At about 1:35 a.m. on August 21st, police responded to a man shot at 4300 South Federal Street on Chicago's South Side. They found Bennie Madison shot. He was taken in critical condition to Stroger Hospital, but was pronounced dead at 2:21 a.m.

Photographing at the site

Anthony Anglin, 71

On August 20th at around 1 a.m., masked men forced their way into Anthony Anglin's home at 10817 South Sangamon Street in the Morgan Park neighborhood. They ransacked the house and shot Anthony in the chest. Anthony's son told police that he, a woman and his father were all at home when the two armed masked men came into the house.

Photographing at the site the first time & the second time

Domingo Hernandez, 30

At about 9:00 p.m. on August 16th, Domingo Hernandez and a 17-year-old boy were shot at while they were loading furniture into a truck in the alley behind 4903 West Walton Street in the West Side's Austin neighborhood. Domingo was shot in the head and was pronounced dead four days later at Stroger Hospital.

Photographing at the site

Roger Kizer, 31

Roger Kizer was killed in a drive-by shooting that happened at about 11:30 p.m. on August 19th at 7450 South Kenwood Avenue in the Grand Crossing neighborhood. He was slain a house down from where he lived and was dead at the scene.

Photographing at the site

Schirron Hoskins, 18

At about 10:00 p.m. on August 19th, Schirron Hoskins was killed and two others were wounded in a drive-by shooting at 1650 West 62nd Street. Shots were fired from a vehicle traveling eastbound on South Paulina Street in the West Englewood neighborhood. Schirron was shot in the head and was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital at 10:52 p.m.

Photograhing at the site

Jaime Ramirez, 27

At about 3:45 a.m. on August 19th, a dark-colored sport utility vehicle drove past Jaime Ramirez. Someone from inside the vehicle shouted gang slogans and a gunman began shooting from inside. Jaime was hit multiple times. He was found several doors away from his home in the street at 9129 South Burley Avenue in the South Chicago neighborhood. He was pronounced dead at 4:45 a.m. at Advocate Christ Medical Center.

Photographing at the site