CHICAGO, March 8 (UPI) -- CeaseFire, the anti-violence group in Chicago, said it is making progress reducing violence, despite mixed results.
Under a $1 million contract with the city, CeaseFire operates in two police beats in the Woodlawn and two beats in the North Lawndale neighborhoods.
The 24 outreach workers keep tabs on high-risk residents, including known shooters and recent parolees, and direct them to jobs, schools and social services.
And violence interrupters keep an eye out for conflicts, which they attempt to mediate, the Sun Times said.
CeaseFire said it conducted 20 mediations in North Lawndale and 12 in Woodlawn to cool down those who were tempted to commit violent crimes.
There were three homicides and nine non-fatal shootings from October to February in North Lawndale, compared to one killing and five shootings a year earlier.
"It was kind of rough for us at the end of the year in the North Lawndale, but violence has dramatically decreased since then," said Tio Hardiman, the director of the group.
And in Woodlawn, there were three murders and seven non-fatal shootings in the same period of time, compared to four killings and 12 non-fatal shootings a year earlier.
