Crime in Chicago is as old as the city itself. It’s national reputation for vice dates back to the 1840s. The Chicago Democrat, the first newspaper in Chicago, noted that its “getting to be a notorious fact that robbers, pickpockets, thimble riggers are perfectly at home in our city.” By the 1850s, Chicago reportedly had more Vice districts per capita than New York City. It’s notoriety would only grow to epic heights once Al Capone stepped off the train from Brooklyn 70 years later.
Al Capone and the Outfit no longer control Chicago. They haven’t in decades. Crime evolved with the city. Today, it’s a different story.
What does crime look like in Chicago today? Beyond all the shit talking on cable news about Chicago and crime, what’s the real picture of crime in Chicago? What are the stats? What are people getting arrested for in Chicago & Cook County? What’s happening with their cases? What types of results do people get in their cases?
Thankfully, the Cook County State’s Attorney can provide some answers. In 2018, they released comprehensive statistics on the previous year’s criminal court activity. The State’s Attorney’s Office released data on the types of felony charges filed in 2017, as well as the criminal case outcomes (dispositions) in 2017.
2017 Case Charge Levels
- Misdemeanors arrests: 400,000+
- Felony arrests: 33,544
TYPES OF CRIMES
Drug arrests make up the largest percentage of felony arrests in Chicago. They account for almost 37% of arrests. Unlike most felonies, drug cases do not have to be approved by the Cook County State’s Office before charges are filed.
For all other types of felonies, if you get arrested, you cannot be charged until the Cook County State’s Attorney Felony Review Office approves charges. The most popular types of charges seen by the felony review office are:
- Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon
- Retail Theft
- DUI
- Burglary
- Driving While License Suspended
- Robbery
- Battery
- Aggravated Battery of a Police Officer
Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon
Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon was the most charged offense in Cook County outside of drug offenses. 10% of all felony charges in 2017 were Aggravated Unlawful Use of Weapons charges. 4,579 Aggravated Unlawful Use of Weapons cases were charged by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office in 2017. Of those cases:
- 3,629 occurred in the city of Chicago
- 950 occurred in the suburbs
- 4% were white (84% approval rating)
- 79% black (89% approval rating)
- 14% latino (88% approval rating)
- 2% other (2% approval rating)
Once it came to court:
- 3,378 outcomes on Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon cases
- 2,389 pled guilty
- Including to a plea to an amended or lesser charge
- Bench trial: Not Guilty: 253
- Bench trial: Guilty: 165
- Jury trial: Not Guilty: 22
- Jury trial: Guilty: 21
- Dismissed: 503
Retail Theft
Second in line was Retail Theft. In Illinois, if the value of the item is over $300, you can be charged with a felony retail theft. 1,883 cases were charged by Felony Review in 2017. Of these cases:
- 1,278 occurred in the city of Chicago
- 605 occurred in the suburbs
- 18% were white (45% approval rating)
- 66% black (47% approval rating)
- 8% latino (41% approval rating)
- 10% other (19% approval rating)
Once it came to court:
- 1, 388 outcomes on Retail Theft cases
- 907 pled guilty
- Including to a plea to an amended or lesser charge
- Bench trial: Not Guilty: 1
- Bench trial: Guilty: 41
- Jury trial: Not Guilty: 1
- Jury trial: Guilty: 1
- Dismissed: 426
Burglary
Burglary comes in at number 3 on the top types of felonies charged in 2017. A total of 1,623 cases were referred. This includes both regular burglary and residential burglary. Of those cases:
- 860 occurred in the city of Chicago
- 763 occurred in the suburbs
- 22% were white (88% approval rating)
- 55% black (90% approval rating)
- 20% latino (90% approval rating)
- 3% other (63% approval rating)
Once it came to court:
- 1,478 outcomes on Burglary cases
- 1,308 pled guilty
- Including to a plea to an amended or lesser charge
- Bench trial: Not Guilty: 14
- Bench trial: Guilty: 46
- Jury trial: Not Guilty: 2
- Jury trial: Guilty: 5
- Dismissed: 92
AGGRAVATED DUI
DUI’s are the fourth most popular charge submitted to felony review. That’s down from number three in 2016. 1,522 aggravated DUI cases referred in 2017.
- 674 occurred in the city of Chicago
- 848 occurred in the suburbs
- 15% were white (89% approval rating)
- 32% black (91% approval rating)
- 45% latino (91% approval rating)
- 8% other (80% approval rating)
The statistics on the court results are a little different in this category. The State’s Attorney’s office included misdemeanor DUIs and felony DUIs in their data set. 2016 DUI case outcomes:
- 1,754 outcomes on DUIs
- 1,469 pled guilty
- Including to a plea to an amended or lesser charge
- Bench trial: Not Guilty: 61
- Bench trial: Guilty: 47
- Jury trial: Not Guilty: 3
- Jury trial: Guilty: 4
- Dismissed: 138
DRIVING WHILE LICENSE SUSPENDED
Number five on the list of favorites for felonies charged in 2017 in Cook County is Driving While License Suspended. Most people don’t realize that if your license is suspended or revoked for DUI and you’re caught driving, the punishment can be extremely serious. We’re talking jail time, felony conviction, even prison. Of the 1,432 felony Driving While License Suspended or Revoked charges in 2017:
- 885 occurred in the city of Chicago
- 547 occurred in the suburbs
- 11% were white (92% approval rating)
- 56% black (95% approval rating)
- 29% latino (92% approval rating)
- 4% other (86% approval rating)
Once it came to court:
- 1,348 criminal case outcomes on Driving While License Suspended or Revoked.
- 1,080 pled guilty
- Including to a plea to an amended or lesser charge
- Bench trial: Not Guilty: 6
- Bench trial: Guilty: 17
- Jury trial: Not Guilty: 0
- Jury trial: Guilty: 1
- Dismissed: 237
ROBBERY
Robberies come in at number 6. 1,279 robbery charges were filed in 2017. Of these cases:
- 893 occurred in the city of Chicago
- 386 occurred in the suburbs
- 8% were white (91% approval rating)
- 75% black (86% approval rating)
- 15% latino (93% approval rating)
- 3% other (12% approval rating)
Once it came to court:
- 1,141 case outcomes in Robbery cases
- 956 pled guilty
- Including to a plea to an amended or lesser charge
- Bench trial: Not Guilty: 44
- Bench trial: Guilty: 40
- Jury trial: Not Guilty: 1
- Jury trial: Guilty: 7
- Dismissed: 85
Aggravated Battery
Felony Battery cases took the seventh spot with 1,048 felony charges filed in 2017. The types of felony charges included in this are Aggravated Battery and Domestic Battery, felony or misdemeanor. In addition, Aggravated Battery to a Peace Officer is not included, as it has its own category.
- 526 occurred in the city of Chicago
- 522 occurred in the suburbs
- 17% were white (80% approval rating)
- 57% black (82% approval rating)
- 19% latino (86% approval rating)
- 6% other (30% approval rating)
Once it came to court:
- 788 Aggravated Battery case outcomes, including Domestic Battery.
- 627 pled guilty
- Including to a plea to an amended or lesser charge
- Bench trial: Not Guilty: 37
- Bench trial: Guilty: 38
- Jury trial: Not Guilty: 4
- Jury trial: Guilty: 8
- Dismissed: 65
Aggravated Battery to a Police Officer
629 Aggravated Battery to a Police Officer cases were charged in 2017. Of those cases:
- 267 occurred in the city of Chicago
- 362 occurred in the suburbs
- 14% were white (96% approval rating)
- 69% black (94% approval rating)
- 14% latino (90% approval rating)
- 3% other (50% approval rating)
Once it came to court:
- 662 Aggravated Battery to Police Officer case outcomes
- 561 pled guilty
- Including to a plea to an amended or lesser charge
- Bench trial: Not Guilty: 10
- Bench trial: Guilty: 25
- Jury trial: Not Guilty: 2
- Jury trial: Guilty: 4
- Dismissed: 52
Homicide
455 homicides occurred in Cook County in 2017.
- 295 occurred in the city of Chicago
- 160 occurred in the suburbs
- 6% were white (92% approval rating)
- 69% black (70% approval rating)
- 23% latino (77% approval rating)
- 2% other (36% approval rating)
Once it came to court:
- 340 homicide case outcomes
- 183 pled guilty
- Including to a plea to an amended or lesser charge
- Bench trial: Not Guilty: 16
- Bench trial: Guilty: 43
- Jury trial: Not Guilty: 11
- Jury trial: Guilty: 57
- Dismissed: 24
Homicide was not one of the largest number of felony cases charged in 2017 by Felony Review. They did, however, include the data due to Chicago’s ongoing problem with homicide.
These statistics give you a good idea of who is being charged and where they are being charged in Cook County. The court outcome statistics give a good picture of what happens once your case goes to court. If you’ve been charged with a crime, you want to end up in the Not Guilty or Dismissed statistics. As you can see, that is far from promised or even necessarily likely.
That’s were an experienced criminal defense firm comes in. At Robert Callahan & Associates, we have the experience, knowledge, skill and determination to fight for a successful outcome in your case. You don’t want to become one of these numbers in the Cook County State’s Attorney data set. If you do, you want to make sure you’ve hired a firm who can keep that statistic from becoming a conviction on your record.
We know the law, we’ve run the numbers, we’re ready to fight for justice on your behalf. Call us for any and all of your criminal law issues at 312 322 9000.
* All statistics and data taken from October 2017 Cook County State’s Attorney Data Report, found at: