Chicago braces for deadly July 4 weekend as Fox News analyst takes action in brother's unsolved murder

Fox News

7 hours ago

Chicago is bracing for another violent 4th of July weekend as Fox News political analyst Gianno Caldwell continues to fight for answers in his brother's 2022 murder in the Windy City.
More than 100 people were shot over the holiday weekend last year, 19 of whom were killed, following a years-long trend of violent crime that threatens the city on Independence Day.
The issue of violent crime in Chicago hits close to home for Caldwell, whose 18-year-old brother, Christian Beamon, was one of two people killed and two others injured in a shooting on Chicago's South Side on June 24, 2022, in an attack that was not intended for him, according to the Chicago Police Department (CPD).
"When tragedy hit, I had no idea that that door would be knocked on — never wanted that door to be knocked on — but because it was, and because I happen to be in a place where I have access to contacts people don't normally have, certainly, this has [received] a lot of attention in the press," Cadlwell told Fox News Digital of his brother's unsolved murder.
Caldwell, who published a book this week titled, "The Day My Brother was Murdered: My Journey Through America's Violent Crime Crisis," told Fox News Digital that he felt called to write a book about his experience trying to solve his brother's murder after going three years without answers.
CPD told Fox News Digital that its investigation into Beamon's murder is ongoing, and no one is currently in custody in connection with the fatal shooting.
"I realized just how much help was needed … after experiencing this tragedy in my own family. I didn't know the great difficulties I would experience days after my brother's tragic murder. He was an innocent kid, never accused of doing anything," Caldwell said. "The police have continuously mentioned that he wasn't a target. And there's so many families who have [similar] experiences, as well."
The book also details the murders of other innocent Americans killed in violent crimes across the country on the same day of Beamon's murder and features commentary from Fox News host Sean Hannity, "America's Most Wanted" host John Walsh and Dr. Drew Pinsky.
"Enough is enough."
"On June 24, 2022, there were 150 people murdered on that very day across the country," Caldwell explained. "So many people have lost potential in their own families, and, unfortunately, that potential lies in graveyards in their cities. Enough is enough. That's why it was time to write this book."
While awaiting answers from authorities, Caldwell has turned his grief into action. He has offered a $250,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest of everyone involved in Beamon's murder, and he also founded the Caldwell Institute for Public Safety, a nonprofit "working to create a more secure America through crime prevention, public safety initiatives, and victim support."
"We know that there is a crime crisis, but there are solutions to it in cities that have worked. Miami is an example, which has the lowest homicide rate since the 1950s. … So, there are ways to get it done," Caldwell said. "There just has to be a focus, and it has to [be] for places like Chicago, which has had a violent crime problem historically. They just need brave leadership. People are willing to go in, not just for the sake of being re-elected or for making money or some kind of fame, but for the people."
Caldwell himself said he is interested in pursuing a mayoral run to help bring policies to Chicago that would prevent violent tragedies like the one that took his brother's life.
"Enforce the laws that are on the books. In some cases, enhance the laws. Don't create laws like the SAFE-T Act in Illinois, which allow[s] for people who are accused of murder to have ankle monitor bracelets," Caldwell said. "It is going to take, again, brave elected officials who are willing to stand the call, not be concerned about their poll numbers or be concerned about being re-elected. These are individuals who are there for the people, not for themselves."
The Illinois Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today (SAFE-T) Act, which took effect on Jan. 1, 2023, overhauled Illinois' justice system with provisions that granted more freedoms to defendants and reduced certain felonies to misdemeanors. It also lowered the severity of some misdemeanors, like trespassing, and eliminated cash bail across the state.
"When I started the Caldwell Institute for Public Safety at caldwellinstitute.org … we supported Nathan Hochman for [Los Angeles] District Attorney, somebody who's strong on crime, believes in fairness and justice, but treating the criminal just like they are, a criminal. And those are what I think many Democrats on the left are not … willing to do. They're not willing to stand up and be brave and say, no, enough is enough. We gotta be tough," the Fox analyst said.
The June 24, 2022, shooting that killed Beamon on the 11400 block of South Vincennes Avenue also left an 18-year-old woman dead, a 31-year-old man in critical condition and a 25-year-old woman in "fair" condition with a gunshot wound to the leg, according to CPD.
An unidentified male offender entered a black sedan and fled the scene eastbound after the shooting, CPD said.
Chicago reached a 25-year high in homicides in 2021, when it recorded 804 killings. Since then, that number has steadily fallen to 695 homicides in 2022, 617 homicides in 2023, and 573 homicides in 2024. Last year marked the first time in five years since the Windy City recorded a homicide total under 600.
Of the 573 homicides recorded last year, CPD's Bureau of Detectives cleared 319, representing a clearance rate of 51.7% — the highest since 2019.
Fox News Digital reached out to the mayor's office for comment.
Caldwell and his brother were two of nine siblings who grew up in a low-income household in Chicago. The Fox analyst has repeatedly criticized the city's soft-on-crime policies that allow repeat offenders back on the streets.
Born in 2004, Beamon was the youngest of the siblings and had just turned 18 in 2022. Caldwell previously told Fox News Digital that Beamon and his other younger brothers are like sons to him as the oldest sibling.
Cook County Crime Stoppers is offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the suspect or suspects involved in the shooting that left Beamon dead.