Gary Mayor Hoping For Emergency Hiring Of Police After Spike In Homicides
CHICAGO (CBS) -- With more than a dozen homicides in the city so far this year, the crime spike in Gary, Indiana, is alarming, and the city is calling the need for more police officers an emergency.
There's an emergency hiring process to get the numbers where they need to be to fight the crime as there have been 16 homicides in just the first three months of 2019.
That's more than a 25 percent spike since the same time last year in Gary.
But the crimes behind the numbers are what's really disturbing.
Most recently, a 64-year-old man was stabbed to death. A woman and her teenage son were shot and killed in their home. Another woman was shot in the face and left in the road.
Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson said they are working to increase the number of police officers on the streets through an emergency hiring process.
"We have an emergency hire group now pending before the police commission," she said. "Our goal is to ensure we have 180 police officers on the street. Right now we are closer to 174."
The mayor insists while crime has spiked, the acts of violence haven't been random, but with all eyes on city hall and the police department, she's asking for the public's help.
"What we need the public to do is let us know when they hear gunshots. We also ask them to cooperate when there may be people involved in illegal activity, particularly drug related activity."