>> For many people affected by gun violence, finding justice is an important step towards healing according to the Chicago Police Department.

56 1% of homicide cases were cleared last year, but only 23% results resulted in an arrest.

Gun violence advocates say discrepancies in reporting and poor communication with victims is leaving survivors without badly needed answers.

Joining us now, our and executive director of Illinois Rios.

an investigative reporter at that race and Delfina Cherry, a gun violence prevention advocate.

We should mention.

We also reached out to the Chicago Police Department to join us, but they declined our requests today.

I think the 3 of you for joining Retos together.

Let's start with you.

Please explain.

Clearance rates per they calculated.

clearing trades are a tricky way of calculations.

So the FBI has set a standard for how long first month should calculate these.

>> And basically what they do is that they take the number of cases of homicide cases.

Regardless of the year over the number and it happened that year.

So encompasses a lot of years beforehand.

So that kind of makes a bit tricky to see exactly what's happening year by year.

And on top of that, there's also this category called exceptional clearance.

Us and that includes and the Chicago Police Department data that we saw was barred prosecute, which are cases that.

Police had a suspect.

But then when they bought up to prosecutors, they deny them and rejected the case is something back to police either because there's a of evidence or procedural issues.

Whatever the case.

And that's a little gray area.

What happens cases and other category is up for the Thunder.

So of the suspect is thought to be dead.

Then also is clear.

So some of these cases are cleared but not solved.

>> And so cleared.

But that does not necessarily mean an But the arrests that happened as a result prosecutions, those also get calculated into the clearance rates.

But it seems like it's these other areas that that make it a little bit gray.

Yes, okay.

Your lawns of what was the impact of having low clearance rates.

>> Well, when there is no justice, you know, when survivors, those those families don't have justice, it's continued to be trauma.

Regionalization, right?

So if you are, if your loved one your child and sometimes not just one but 2 who have been lost to gun violence.

There's no victim that there's nobody brought to justice.

Then you will find that there's even more crime that happened throughout throughout the city.

Nobody is held accountable.

Then you're going to continue to see more shootings.

It.

>> If nobody is held accountable, then people who might consider committing a crime alert.

You know, why not?

What's what's the risk?

You're not gonna get caught.

Yeah.

Don't scene.

You lost 2 children to gun violence and my condolences.

I'm sorry to hear that that that that is the case.

One was solved in the other was not.

Why do you think that was?

lack of Can I say they think they're dropped the ball in my son's case.

No evidence what said was evidence.

But evidence was tainted.

They did not search for a a suspect.

So his case is spent on SA for 12 years.

Now.

feel like it was a lack.

responsibility of the police department.

I live in the suburbs on the Capitol.

municipality's to Don't.

Take it seriously that she was a loved one.

What was instance the tell us a little bit about those 2 cases, if you want your daughter died in 92 and her case, it got media attention because of of how and where it happened.

Why so my go to on the Gold Coast couple brought from of the life cells.

>> And she had want to see the premiere Juice.

back then if you know, this a lot of people getting shot back then.

And as for friends were coming out it a young man and his friends got into a fight, got a gun track to shoot.

a member the bully hit a building ricocheted and hit her in the killing instantly.

So she was not intended target.

20 years later, pregnant with my He goes to work, come home, get ready for friends, party that you do every year.

He never made it on my driveway.

You know, he was shot.

And never came.

His friend took him to the hospital.

He said there and literally bled to death.

no help.

So felt like my community failed me as a parent felt some as the victim.

And Far as the clearance rate of homicides.

And we're a little bit.

They don't get solved often.

at all.

>> And your your deaths happened Hazel Crest happenings across home front of a home.

As he was getting ready to go to.

A classmate's birthday party it to every year and he never made it out to driveway.

No witnesses.

So they say, but he was alive when his friend took him to the hospital and he was talking and he waited in the emergency 23 minutes before you get waited on.

Before he was treated.

So readable gun violence happens everywhere.

Your reporting found you know, in the in the case of you Delphine once it happened, it happened to your daughter and Gold Coast and it happened to your son Hazel Crest.

>> You're reporting Rita still found that there is a disparity in the amount of crimes solved depending on certain factors.

What are those factors and why the disparity?

>> So in our do we found in Chicago, homicides were true by rust within a year.

Fleck victims 20.

It was 21%.

And for white victims.

38%.

So there is a large gap between those 2 and the reasons behind.

It depends really who ask.

If you us about police officers still say that it's like a resources in order to clear cases and elect witnesses coming forward, especially among the black community.

There's a lack of witnesses, they say.

And you talk to survivors, still explain that people don't feel comfortable coming forward because still feel there's a system of structure place within the police department to keep them safe.

And then they also don't think even if they do come forward.

And that information will be used they think, oh, are going to solve Why should risk my So there's a term of the factors that come into play.

And 2, I there's very right?

>> In the Indo themes, case with your daughter, you know, there was was media coverage.

Her killer was found and sentenced to 50 years.

This presented believe he served 20 and was released several years Actually was released someone's mind.

It.

So he did 20 years of a 50 sentence.

He was 14 when it happened.

We will stay before we get out.

So I figured he'd get his whole life ahead of him.

>> I raise that just because there's also a conversation to be had about the role of the media.

Yolanda how the media covers these cases.

What would you say that role is and how has it been done?

How going to be better or different?

the survivors that we work with in our in our Survivors Council have shared that.

>> You especially for black and brown communities that the media does not cover as they do in say something like a high-profile case, like let's say, the Highland Park mass shooting right?

And so we worked really hard to ensure that those survivors that we work with, that they're heard that their cases are And that's why, you know, coming on to shows like, like this are really, really important.

What what can be done to repair the relationship between black and brown communities that are not seeing a higher clearance rate in their communities.

>> One of the things right.

We recently passed a homicide Data Transparency Act, right?

And so that will ensure that police departments bachelor leap publish homicide data.

>> And share that with the public can share that with communities that are most impacted.

So that is one step towards, you know, kind of healing that relationship and another step towards it will be passing something that we're working on.

Our coalition is working on called the Homicide Victims.

Families Rights Act.

And this would ensure that after a case is cold after 3 years, you could that surviving family could apply for that case to be reviewed.

And if it's accepted a new undetected, fresh eyes would be put on that case.

And it also would assign a family liaisons, a trained in trauma, informed care on to that case to ensure that, you know, families are treated with respect and and humanely because often something that shared in the case of boys being shot and killed black girls being shot and killed black and brown individuals being shot and killed it's often looked at immediately as this is gang-related, right?

Without any investigation.

So it feels as if you know, we don't matter.

And the case doesn't matter.

The victim doesn't matter.

The survivor doesn't matter.

So when we pass this and we're really hoping to pass a patch last session, but we're hoping to pass in upcoming session.

That will also they do some healing work police departments and communities that are impacted.

Delphine.

You've done a lot of work on your to solve your son's case.

What does that look like?

>> It's hard.

It's all right.

So one of son to him information something that I use.

call the police station say, hey, I information.

And they'll say tax it why pay tax public phone.

So what my son's case the detective that was on his case.

What I did was I sent a gate, a somewhat car, my son's picture and a picture of his family and say, look, and if you have children, this was not signed.

It could have been us on.

And he's like mystery.

I was told not to continue working case.

But I would do it.

I just can't let do And he's retired.

still today, I contact him when I have new information.

hopes that he can help you kind of think through what I mean, what to do with this information because retired he he did come to me and say this was my suspect.

But I need a witness to come forward and say that they saw him.

And I can't say it publicly, but there were several witnesses that saw this person that won't come forward.

>> So and the case, the case obviously remains open Rita before run out of time.

What are some recommendations for to CPD or for any police department to improve clearance rates?

>> As the city has acknowledged the problem, low clearance rates and they actually commission Executive Research Forum to provide recommendations and they recently were.

Released a report with those recommendations and some of the things they've done is they've added the family liaison officers to prevent communication, but the families and the detective, there's new area technology centers that are better equipped to handle.

Well, the videos and process that the technology that is needed to solve cases and there's more added forensic stuff, things like that.

So there's more resources specifically for detective.

That's helpful.

We're out of time.

But my thanks to all 3 of you for