An eight-year-old girl was killed in a mass shooting on Chicago‘s south side that left 10 others hurt, including an infant.
Chicago police officers responded to the violent incident around 9.15pm Saturday in the 2000 block of West 52nd Street in Back of the Yards, a neighborhood in Chicago.
According to police, a family was gathered for a birthday party when gunmen opened fire with assault rifles and handguns.
An eight-year-old girl died after she was shot in the head, while a one-year-old boy and a eight-year-old boy were each shot multiple times and were listed in critical condition.
A nine-year-old boy was also injured with a graze wound to his finger. He was taken to the hospital and is in stable condition, police said.
‘This was not a random act of violence. It was likely gang-related,’ Department Deputy Chief Don Jerome said. ‘The offenders´ actions, make no mistake, are horrific and unacceptable in our city.’
Chicago police officers responded to the violent incident around 9.15pm Saturday in the 2000 block of West 52nd Street in Back of the Yards on Saturday around 9.15pm
An eight-year-old girl was killed and 10 others were hurt. A one-year-old boy and a eight-year-old boy were each shot multiple times and listed in critical condition
Police said that at least seven others, from the ages of 19 to 38, were also injured in the shooting
As of Sunday, the little girl has not been identified and the police are looking for two suspects. Nobody was taken into custody.
Police said that at least seven others, from the ages of 19 to 38, were also injured in the shooting.
One of the victims, a 36-year-old man was shot in the arms and back and was listed in critical condition.
‘The Back of the Yards community is unified in our grief, prayers and collective mindset that we must continue to stand firm against these senseless acts of physical force,’ Alderman Stephanie Coleman of the 16th Ward, where the shooting took place, said.
‘Violence is a citywide issue that continues to falsely characterize the true essence and intrinsic nature of our neighborhoods. This tragedy has left us all heartbroken and distressed.’
‘I want to send my heartfelt condolences to the family of this precious jewel and my prayers to every person injured,’ Coleman added.
Police said that witnesses saw a black sedan approach at the time of the shooting and that someone fired shots into the crowd before fleeing.
Pastor Donovan Price told WGN9: ‘All I can say at this point is, I’m going to pray, you pray, and God help us.’
Department Deputy Chief Don Jerome (middle) said that the Chicago Police are investigating the shooting that was ‘likely gang-related’
Police said that witnesses saw a black sedan approach at the time of the shooting and that someone fired shots into the crowd before fleeing
One of the victims, a 36-year-old man was shot in the arms and back and was listed in critical condition
The shooting is being investigated by the Chicago Police Department as Jerome said that witness accounts described two possible shooters on foot.
According to statistics by the Sun-Times, at least 120 children under the age of 16 were shot to death in Chicago since 2018.
In 2024, there have been 36 shooting incidents in the city, according to data from the Chicago Police Department. That rate is up three percent from 2023.
Chicago’s democrat mayor, Brandon Johnson, has not yet made a statement on the shooting.
He previously made a statement on Dexter Reed, 26, who was killed following a traffic stop in Humboldt Park after police pulled him over for allegedly failing to wear a seatbelt.
Johnson told a press conference that he was ‘devastated’ to be learning of another young, black man killed by police, but stressed that he could have been grieving the loss of another black life if the officer hit had been killed.
Chicago’s democrat mayor, Brandon Johnson, has not yet made a statement on the shooting
Heart-stopping bodycam footage showed the moment Reed ‘opened fire on police’ before cops shot him more than 90 times.
Mayor Johnson vowed a full investigation, adding that Tuesday´s release was part of an effort to be more transparent.
‘Attempts to withhold or delay information are mistakes of the past,’ he said at a news conference with COPA and the Cook County state’s attorney’s office.
‘As mayor and as a father, raising a family, including two black boys on the West Side of Chicago, I´m personally devastated to see yet another young black man lose his life during an interaction with police.’