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CHICAGO — A city official says the Chicago Police Department will hire more than 500 additional officers as it struggles to deal with the city's uptick in gun violence.

Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson is expected to announce the hires Wednesday.

The official, who was briefed on the plan, spoke with The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss it ahead of the announcement.

The department has more than 12,000 officers currently, and hasn't had a hiring push of this magnitude in years.

Chicago has seen more than 500 homicides already — higher than all of 2015.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on overtime for officers rather than hire more in recent years. Emanuel spokesman Adam Collins declined to comment.