Fox News commentator and political analyst Gianno Caldwell will testify before the House Judiciary Committee in Chicago on Tuesday about how progressive “soft on crime” policies have turned the city into an “active war zone” – after the South Side native lost his younger brother to violence firearm.
Lawmakers will visit the Windy City as it struggles with a crime epidemic.
The crisis is so dire there that Caldwell has turned to the FBI to seek justice for his brother, Christian, who was shot to death in June 2022. He was just 18 years old.
“I work directly with the FBI now. I didn’t reveal it publicly. I will mention it at trial,” Caldwell told The Post Monday, adding that Chicago’s Democratic prosecutors and politicians are “recklessly” ignoring murders that disproportionately ravaged the black community.
“They are working with the Chicago Police Department to try to bring a positive resolution to the murder of my innocent teenage brother.”
Caldwell, 36, who runs a bipartisan consulting firm based in Washington, DC, is set to call on Congress on Tuesday to “fully utilize the FBI to help clean up the murders in our city.” His brother’s killer has not yet been identified.
He will also urge lawmakers to provide funding to hire and train 2,000 more police officers to improve community policing of crime-ridden communities.
Gianno Caldwell (right) with his brother Christian, who was killed last year in an unsolved random shooting.
Caldwell’s testimony will mark the first time he will address Congress after a lifetime of service that he said began with an internship with his local Chatham alderman when he was 14 years old.
“It’s been a fight for years, I just didn’t know it would affect my family personally,” he said.
The Fox News contributor said he was eager to speak with lawmakers on the committee, led by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Oh.), but was not encouraged to learn Friday that the Democratic leadership did not make the trip to Illinois.
“After my name was released… all of a sudden I got a call ‘saying hey they’re not coming,'” he said of the hearing, which he said has been rescheduled several times.
“This is an opportunity to really do something on a policy basis for the city of Chicago, and those who have been active participants in this conversation because this is not just a Chicago issue, it’s a New York issue, it’s a Philadelphia issue, it’s a San Francisco issue,” he continued.
Chicago has led the U.S. in homicides for 11 consecutive years, sometimes surpassing the annual homicide totals of New York and Los Angeles combined.AP
“This affects several cities across our country. Don’t you want to be part of the solution? A bipartisan solution?”
Caldwell slammed the expected absence as “callous”.
“Many of the same individuals have been screaming left and right ‘Black Lives Matter,'” he fumed.
“But Chicago is a city of 2.7 million people. Eighty percent of the people killed last year were black, and this city is only 29% black.”
Democratic committee member, Rep. Jerry Nadler did not immediately return a request for comment on the defamation allegations.
A preview of Caldwell’s address obtained by The Post puts the blame on the “decriminalization of misdemeanors,” progressive Cook County prosecutors “who refuse to prosecute,” and the city’s “no-pursuit policy” for police.
“These officials recklessly ignored the people they were elected to represent and as a result, bodies – mostly, Black bodies – littered the streets of Chicago,” read the powerful speech.
At least 10 armed robberies were reported overnight in Chicago.
The Judiciary Committee will be in Chicago next week to address this crisis.
The American people have had enough of the Left’s soft crime policies. https://t.co/e8bgjaByIY
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) September 22, 2023
“The policies pushed by the Cook County prosecutor, and current and previous mayors, have proven to be a death sentence for the people of Chicago. What began as, perhaps, the noble cause of criminal justice reform has become justice for … criminals,” it continued.
“Our police who have been handcuffed … because criminals no longer live in fear of being arrested or prosecuted. When you can steal at will, when you can drive away from the police during a traffic stop — the streets become unmanageable. Murder, as many like my family know, is close behind.”
Chicago has led the nation in homicides for the past 11 years, despite having only one-third the population of New York City, according to independent research outlet Wirepoints.
In 2022, 695 people were killed in the Windy City — a 39% increase from 2019, after spikes during outbreaks in 2020 and 2021, according to figures from the Chicago Police Department.
“They are largely numb to the violence that exists here in Chicago. ‘Oh that’s just another shot. Oh someone just got shot, Chuck just got shot,’” an exasperated Caldwell told The Post.
Caldwell claims both residents and police are “largely numb to the violence that exists here in Chicago.” Facebook/Gianno Caldwell
“I have to tell you, the value of human life in the city of Chicago has been eroded. It has been eroded for a long time. And with that in mind, especially if you’re a poor individual, and you live in this poor, black area, you may never leave the city. You’ve probably never seen anything different, so how do you know? This is just your reality day by day.”
Tuesday’s “Victims of Violent Crimes Hearing” is also set to feature testimony from Lt. John Garrido III, a retired CPD detective and retired officer Carlos Yanez Jr.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
