The head of the Chicago Police Department this week shot down the idea of accepting help from the Illinois National Guard.
While Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy agrees the city could use help combating street violence, he contends that would be best served by more stringent gun laws, according to WBBM-TV.
"No way, no how," McCarthy told reporters. "The National Guard is not a policing force. They're a military force."
Gov. Pat Quinn was asked over the weekend whether there had been discussions about using the National Guard or state police to help Chicago police. While the governor said there hadn't been, he said he was open to sharing state resources if the city's officials wanted them.
McCarthy and Mayor Rahm Emanuel believe that their violence-reduction strategies are working, despite a gang-related mass shooting at Cornell Square Park last week.
They both renewed their calls for tougher gun laws.
"It's not an issue of resources. It's the issue of supporting that system," he said." If people don’t go to jail for possession of a firearm, they don't learn not to carry a firearm."
