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Chicago Rang In 2017 With 46 Shootings

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Amber Randall Civil Rights Reporter
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Gun violence injured 41 people in Chicago while five were killed over New Year’s weekend, reports NBC Chicago.

This weekend’s shootings are on pace with last year’s numbers. New Year’s weekend in 2016 had four killed in shootings, with 42 people shot in total.

The first homicide of the weekend happened around 9:40 p.m Friday. Chicago officers arrived on the scene after responding to calls about shots fired. They showed up to find a 15-year-old boy dead at the scene after being shot in the head multiple times.

One man died after a traffic confrontation with another man. A Mercedes sideswiped Kenneth Weaver’s car; a person got out of the vehicle and confronted Weaver.

During the argument, the person took out a gun and fatally wounded Weaver. Weaver was rushed to the hospital and later pronounced dead.

Chicago ended 2016 with approximately 762 homicides, a number not seen in the city in almost twenty years. The city also experienced 3,550 shooting incidents and 4,331 shooting victims, according to the Chicago Police Department.

Chicago’s 2016 homicide rate was also higher than Los Angeles’ and New York City’s homicide rates. New York City had 334 murders in 2016 while Los Angeles experienced 294.

Protesters spent New Year’s Eve calling for an end to the city’s rising violence. People marched in silent protest and carried three-foot crosses to symbolize those who lost their lives in the city’s gun violence.  (RELATED: Chicago Rings In New Year With Protest Against Skyrocketing Homicide Rate)

“This is a Chicago problem,” Rev. Michael Pfleger said. “The reason we’re on Michigan Avenue is because this is a Chicago problem. And until everybody in Chicago decides it’s their problem we’re not going to end it.”

Pfleger said he hoped the protest would cause people to work to end the violence in Chicago.

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