Fox News analyst Gianno Caldwell rips Chicago's 'soft-on-crime' policies as brother's killer remains at large
Police have made no arrests four days after Caldwell's brother, Christian, was gunned down on Chicago's far South Side
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News analyst Gianno Caldwell took a break from planning his 18-year-old brother’s funeral to appear on TV Monday and plead for information on who may behind the brutal Chicago shooting.
A Chicago Police Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital that there were no updates available as of Monday morning and that nobody was in custody in connection to the shooting death of Caldwell’s 18-year-old brother, Christian, who was gunned down four days ago on the far South Side.
Chicago police said there also were no updates in the tragic, yet unrelated killing of 5-month-old baby girl Cecilia Thomas, who was killed by gunfire while sitting in a car Saturday on the South Side.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"It has come to the point where people have become desensitized to the violence and the murders that take place here," Caldwell said during an in-studio interview with FOX 32 Chicago Monday.
CHICAGO 5-MONTH-OLD BABY GIRL DIES AFTER BEING SHOT IN THE HEAD: ‘A DISGRACE’
"Something needs to change urgently. If it wasn’t my little brother, would I be getting all this coverage for him?" he asked rhetorically. "Would people even know his name? No."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"What about the 5-month-old girl who was just murdered on Friday?" he added. "You don’t even really know her name. It’s just the fact that it happened to an infant that we’re reading about it."
Caldwell decried what he deemed a "lifestyle of violence" in Chicago. He said his brother was working and looking forward to going to college but unfortunately his life was snuffed short.
Fox News analyst Gianno Caldwell is looking for answers after his 18-year-old brother, Christian, was fatally shot in Chicago on Saturday. (Gianno Caldwell)
"The fact that this continues to happen in this city, one in which I grew up in, one in which I love, is utterly disappointing, disgusting," Caldwell said, growing emotional at times during the interview. "There’s no value for human life. That value has been eroded over the years. Living in Chicago should not come with a death sentence, but it does for so many people who live here."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Caldwell’s brother, Christian, was standing outside with a group of people in the 11400 block of S. Vincennes at approximately 2:06 a.m. Friday when he and two others – a 31-year-old man and a 25-year-old woman – were shot by an unidentified male offender who entered a black sedan and fled the scene eastbound, police said.
Gianno Caldwell is one of nine siblings. He said his younger brothers are more like his sons. (Gianno Caldwell)
Christian died of his injuries, while the other male victim, who police said was shot in the torso, was listed in critical condition, and the 25-year-old woman was shot in a leg and was in fair condition. Police have not responded to multiple questions from Fox News Digital so far regarding the potential motive for the shooting.
"Forgiveness comes with accountability," Caldwell said, noting that murder in the state of Illinois comes with a minimum of 25 years to life, and he wants the maximum penalty for his brother’s killer. Yet he is not against forgiveness and reform for the offender while incarcerated.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Caldwell also ripped what he deemed "soft-on-crime" policies in Chicago that leave police afraid of enforcing the law, warning that if criminals aren’t held accountable, "your family could be next."
Gianno Caldwell is one of nine siblings and said his younger brothers are more like his sons. (Gianno Caldwell)
"I’m leaving the studio to go plan a funeral for my baby brother," he said. "When we think about not just him, but the violence that has been created in Chicago, and some of the policies which has systematically – the soft-on-crime policies which we’ve seen in the city --- they have to come to an end."
"We gotta unhandcuff the police, allow them to do their jobs because they’re in fear of doing their jobs," Caldwell continued. "I understand that we can have criminal justice reform, we can have police reform, but there has to be a balance because at this point criminals are unafraid of the police, they’re unafraid of the prosecutors, they won’t capitulate to the laws, so what do we do next?
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
"We’re going to have to throw the book at them, and I understand we have compassion for people as we should, but at the same time, if we don’t, your family could be next."
Neither Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot nor Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx have responded to requests for comment from Fox News Digital regarding the case.