(NewsNation) — Armed, private security is becoming more common outside some stores and restaurants, as violence and robberies are on the rise at stores across the country.
Six major cities including New York and Los Angeles are on track to surpass last year’s staggering crime rates.
Chicago is another example of a city where violent crimes continue to surge. Except there, criminals are often getting away with it, as the city’s police arrested the fewest number of suspects in at least 20 years.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, police made arrests in only 12% of crimes reported last year — the lowest level since the data was made publicly available in 2001.
It’s an arrest rate that’s been on the decline since peaking at nearly 31% in 2005 and as Chicago’s most violent neighborhoods became more dangerous than ever in 2021.
The newspaper cites the pandemic, dramatic shifts in strategy from the top, increased scrutiny of the police and officers saying they increasingly feel that making an arrest isn’t worth risking their lives, their jobs or becoming a viral news villain.
According to nonprofit USA Facts, the number of arrest nationwide in 2019 dropped to a level lower than 1980, as more crimes are being reported in major crimes across the nation.
In New York, for example, rates for murder, rape, robbery, felony assault, burglary, grand larceny and grand larceny auto have increased a cumulative total of 27% compared to last year.
And in Los Angeles, people are being murdered at a much quicker rate than in 2021, when homicides hit a 15-year high.
But even places that once felt safe, including grocery stores and restaurants, are now becoming more dangerous. According to The Wall Street Journal, aggravated assaults in restaurants increased by 60%, while assaults in grocery stores went up 73%.
That has already been evidenced this year: A string of armed robberies forced several 7-Elevens in the Los Angeles area to close and Starbucks closed 16 stores from California to Philadelphia because of safety concerns.
