Chicago's Bloody Weekend: 46 Shot, 7 Killed

The news out of Chicago just five days ago was encouraging: after a murder-riddled 2012, this year's murder rate had plummeted to a level not seen in 50 years. Today, the news is of a darker nature. Between Friday afternoon and Sunday, a total of 46 people were shot in the city, seven fatally, per the Tribune. (Other sources put the tally slightly lower.)

The stat does represent a sort of improvement: The Tribune reports that around this time last year, those numbers were 53 and nine, respectively. And the Atlantic Wire notes that a deadlier weekend has already occurred in 2013: January closed with eight deaths. The youngest victim, 16-year-old Kevin Rivera, apparently tried to flee from a gunman on a bicycle late Saturday. The dead teen's family was just two weeks away from a move from their sometimes dangerous Hermosa neighborhood. (More Chicago stories.)