Cook County Board Votes To Create Gun Violence Coordinator Position
(CBS) -- The Cook County Board has approved appointing a gun violence coordinator who will be expected to "live, eat, breathe and sleep gun violence," reports WBBM's Mike Krauser.
Commissioner Richard Boykin, who is behind the idea, said the yet-to-be named gun violence coordinator will certainly have his or her work cut out for them with roughly 2,500 shootings in the city this year so far.
"This will be the first gun violence coordinator, to my knowledge, in the United States of America," Boykin said.
"The Cook County Board heard the people who said this is intolerable, we've got to change it," said Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, chairman of the Criminal Justice Committee.
Boykin said he hopes the person is in place before the end of the year.
"All they do is live, eat, breathe and sleep gun violence and make sure that they come up ideas," Boykin said.
Sheriff Tom Dart will appoint the gun violence coordinator.
