Alex Benison, 35, was fatally shot on September 14, 2012, in Chicago, Illinois. His death occurred during a year when the city saw a sharp rise in homicides, with gun violence tied to gang conflicts and the easy availability of illegal firearms cited as major factors.

Benison’s killing is one of hundreds that year that highlighted broader problems affecting parts of the city: poverty, gang activity, and the proliferation of guns that turned many disputes deadly. His death illustrates how individual losses fit into a larger pattern of community trauma and violence in certain Chicago neighborhoods in 2012.