Illinois Moms Demand Action, Everytown Respond to Mass Shooting at a Chicago Restaurant That Killed Four People

Gun Violence by the Numbers (and Visuals) Available Here

CHICAGO – The Illinois chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, part of Everytown for Gun Safety, released the following statement in response to a shooting in Chicago on Thursday that left four people dead. Authorities are still investigating the shootings, but early reports suggest the shooter fatally shot four people at a restaurant late Thursday afternoon.

As documented in a report last June by Everytown and the National Urban League, weak gun laws in nearby states are one of the factors contributing to Chicago’s gun violence. Three in five guns recovered at Chicago crime scenes were first sold in other states, according to a 2014 trace analysis by the city and the University of Chicago Crime Lab. The top out-of-state suppliers according to the analysis were Indiana, Mississippi and Wisconsin – none of which require a background check for every gun sale.

Across the country, more than 90 people are killed each day with guns and hundreds more are injured, on average.

STATEMENT FROM BRENNA O’BRIEN, VOLUNTEER WITH THE ILLINOIS CHAPTER OF MOMS DEMAND ACTION FOR GUN SENSE IN AMERICA:

“Our thoughts tonight are with each of the families who are grieving. Too many families, in Chicago and across the country, have lost a loved one to gun violence, and their grief should push all of us to do everything that we can to address this crisis. We have to do more to close the gaps in our country’s gun laws and to stop the tide of guns making their way to Chicago from states that don’t require background checks for all gun sales.”