Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke vowed Monday to crack down on gun criminals as she takes the reins as the top law enforcement official in a county she says is “being overshadowed by crime.” “We have unparalleled opportunities here. We have world-class universities, we have infrastructure. We even have a fresh water supply,” O’Neill Burke said after a ceremonial swearing-in as the county’s top prosecutor, says the Chicago Sun-Times. “We are primed to boom, but we are being overshadowed by crime right now,” she said. “While our crime rates are beginning to come down, the progress is not sufficient, particularly when it comes to gun violence.” O’Neill Burke cited the recent killings of Chicago police officer Enrique Martinez and Oak Park Police Detective Allan Reddins among the “war zone numbers” of people being wounded by gun violence. “Right now, we are having a mass shooting on a regular basis. We are becoming numb to the numbers. I don’t want to become numb. I want to do something about it,” O’Neill Burke said, promising “safety and a fair criminal justice system.”
O’Neill Burke, 59, will forgo a $17,633-per-month pension as a former Illinois appellate court justice and a former assistant state’s attorney while serving as the county’s top prosecutor, which will pay $228,613. She eked out victory over the Democratic Party’s slated candidate, Clayton Harris, by fewer than 1,600 votes. O’Neill Burke easily dispatched Republican Bob Fioretti with about 61% of the vote in last month’s general election. O’Neill Burke called the state’s assault weapons ban — which is being challenged in a downstate federal court — a top tool to address Chicago gun violence. “There is no doubt in my mind that the appellate courts are going to uphold our ban,” O’Neill Burke said. “Starting today, we are treating the possession of these weapons with the seriousness they demand.” Her first policy directive calls for prosecutors to seek detention for “every detainable felony offense where an offender used or possessed a firearm equipped with an extended magazine, drum magazine, automatic switch, or used a ghost gun or defaced firearm.” The county also will seek detention for “any domestic violence-related, stalking or sex offense where the offender used or possessed a weapon” as well as “any detainable felony offense that is committed on public transportation,” among other cases, O’Neill Burke’s office said.
Comments