Chicago man charged in murder of 11-year-old girl

— -- A Chicago man has been charged with murder for the shooting death of an 11-year-old girl in Chicago.

Takiyah Holmes was one of two girls, ages 11 and 12, who were both shot in the head in separate, unrelated shootings that took place within an hour of each other in Chicago this Saturday.

Nineteen-year-old Antwan Jones was tied to the scene of the crime through the use of surveillance video and help from the local community, police said.

In announcing his arrest, Chicago Police Supt Eddie Johnson noted that Jones has an extensive record and "has been known to the Chicago police for a long time."

Johnson, while speaking to the press, took the opportunity to plead for stricter gun laws--words that have become a familiar refrain for anyone who has followed the city's struggle to reduce gun violence in recent years.

Johnson said that CPD has arrested twice as many gun offenders as last year but that the violence remains constant. The reason, he said, was that gang members don't take the legal system seriously.

"[They] think the judicial system in Cook County is a joke. They just don't fear it," Johnson said.

Police have been searching for answers to violent crime in the city for a long time.

Violence in Chicago has garnered national attention, following a year that ended with a record number of shootings and the most homicides in two decades, according to police.

There were 3,550 shooting incidents and 762 murders last year, a total that works out to an average of more than two murders and nearly 10 shootings every single day.

The trend has continued this year, with 51 murders and nearly 300 shooting victims in January, according to Chicago Police crime statistics.