Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has addressed the public in the wake of two recent shootings, conveying both the collective grief of a community and a call to action. According to a statement released by his office, Raoul expressed deep condolences following a mass school shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia, coming just days after an unrelated incident where four individuals were shot on Chicago's Blue Line train on Labor Day.

"Once again, we grieve lives needlessly lost to gun violence," Raoul said, detailing the two events that shook Chicago, and now Georgia, "On Monday in Chicago, we were shocked by the shooting of passengers riding a train. Today, we are horrified by the shooting of young people at Apalachee High School in Georgia, who were just starting a new school year." The Attorney General underscored that people, regardless of their location, should not live in fear of gun violence, be it on public transport or within the seemingly safe walls of a school. He extended his heart to the affected families, hoping the memories of the lost will become blessings.

Striking on an urgent note, Raoul stated, "Prayers alone will not protect our families or our communities from gun violence." His message highlighted the inadequacy of thoughts and prayers as a singular response to such tragedies and emphasized the need for substantive action. The Attorney General reaffirmed his commitment to pioneering a comprehensive crackdown on gun violence across Illinois, pledging to work "across jurisdictions and across the aisle."