Having tallied a very promising 41 murders so far in 2013, police officials confirmed Tuesday that the annual Chicago Homicide Drive was off to its fastest start in more than a decade and was already well on its way to reaching this years goal for violent slayings. Its still January, but weve already seen an astounding number of contributions to this years murder drive, Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy told reporters as he raised the red progress line on the Homicide Drives Murdometer, a 15-foot plywood silhouette of a gunned-down body that stands outside City Hall. I dont think anyone dreamed it would be possible to break last years staggering total of 506 murders, but with so many people chipping in all across the city, we may just do it. Theres a tremendous community-wide level of interest and participation in this yearly event, which is quickly becoming a treasured part of Chicago culture. While McCarthy said he remained confident that Chicagoans would set a new Homicide Drive record this year, he cautioned that the city was beginning to face a shortage of potential victims in many of its highest-contributing neighborhoods. 