Former Chicago Detective Says Another City’s Murder Plunge Could Be Blueprint to Cut Windy City Crime

A retired Chicago detective says city leaders should study Memphis, where killings have dropped sharply since National Guard troops were deployed, as Chicago searches for answers to its persistent violent crime crisis.

Memphis recorded a 43.7% decline in homicides during the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier, according to figures from the Major Cities Chiefs Association. President Donald Trump signed an executive order in September 2025 authorizing the National Guard deployment, clearing the way for troops to arrive in Memphis that fall.

Chicago, meanwhile, continues to grapple with bursts of gun violence. On Monday night alone, nine people were shot across the city, three of them fatally. In one case, two men were left in critical condition after shots were fired in the Near North Side neighborhood.

“When we were in our living room, and we thought that another sporadic rainstorm hit Chicago, so we go outside in the windows, next thing you know, we just hear like lights everywhere,” one person told FOX 32.

Retired Chicago Police Chief of Detectives Eugene Roy told News Outlet that Chicago officials have not made enough use of federal support as the city confronts crime while also dealing with a depleted police force.

“Chicago has just 2,500 fewer police officers than it did just two or three years ago. You can’t keep doing more with less. It’s got to come down,” Roy said. “As far as cooperation in preventative levels, which involves street-level policing, there’s very little cooperation, if any, between Chicago and the federal authorities.”

The staffing strain has been worsened by a November 2025 move to suspend classes at the police training academy and reduce hiring to about 50 recruits a month, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. City officials made the cuts as Chicago faced a $1.2 billion budget deficit.

Roy pointed to Memphis in particular as a “success story” on what happens when local and state governments effectively partner with the federal government, as the National Guard and federal law enforcement agencies surged into the city.

“Memphis is a success story on how this can work out. From the material I’ve looked at, they had cooperation from the governor on down, some reluctance at the city level, but they’ve done the right things the right way and it results in the, it’s produced the results,” Roy said.

“The mere presence of police serves as a disincentive to commit crime. You want people to say, ‘hey, people are going out to do something, a robbery, a burglary or whatever. Man, it’s hot out here. The police are everywhere. Let’s forget about it. Let’s do it a different time, a different place. Let’s move on.’ That’s how you prevent crime.”

“Done right, done properly, it is a godsend,” he said.

Memphis recorded 67 homicides in the first six months of 2026, down from 119 during the same period in 2025, according to the Major Cities Chiefs Association.

If done properly in Chicago, Roy said bringing in the National Guard to help would “mirror those in Memphis and other locations where there’s been a truly cooperative effort between the federal and local government.”

Roy said it’s not entirely unprecedented for a Democratic governor to deploy its National Guard to deter crime.

New York Democrat Gov. Kathy Hochul deployed at least 1,000 National Guard members to New York City’s subway system in March 2024 following a series of high-profile crimes, saying it creates a deterrent effect.

“For people who are thinking about bringing a gun or knife on the subway, at least this creates a deterrent effect. They might be thinking, ‘You know what, it just may just not be worth it because I listened to the mayor and I listened to the governor and they have a lot more people who are going to be checking my bags,'” Hochul said.

News Outlet reached out to the Chicago Police Department and the Illinois governor’s office for comment.