Two men were killed and at least 24 other people — including a 3-year-old boy — have been wounded in shootings across Chicago since Friday evening.
Typical scenarios (from MyFoxChicago): Shooting at a party at 2:30 am when a fight broke out, a man standing on a sidewalk at 11:20 pm and shot by some drive by, and shootings in the early morning hours.
The shootings also involved children. A 3-year-old boy was shot Saturday afternoon while he was standing on a sidewalk at about 3 p.m. Someone opened fire and he was shot in the right leg, police said. He was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital, where his condition was stabilized. The boy was not the intended target of the shooting.
At least 19 other people have been wounded in separate shootings since about 5 p.m. Friday.
And last Thursday, a 12-year-old boy was shot in a drive-by shooting while playing tag with friends. And the reason why he was shot? Because he wouldn’t flash a gang sign, neighbors say.
According to the Daily Mail, the boy was left in critical condition in the Gage Park neighborhood after a red SUV pulled up to him and his group of four friends just after 9 pm.
Someone inside yelled ‘Raise the crown’, meaning give the sign for the Latin Kings, a boy in the group said. But the 12-year-old boy froze and didn’t make the sign. A shot went off and the boy collapsed as the SUV sped away, police and neighbors said. Police also the boy who was shot was not in a gang.
The boy was hit in the chest and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition. As of Friday, he was in critical but stable condition.
His friend Manuel Loza, 14, told the Chicago Tribune that the boys called 911 and ran to the boy’s father’s home to tell him what happened. He said that he and his brother Alfredo were afraid to go to school the next day and that their mother couldn’t sleep all night.
His older brother Ernie told CBS Chicago that he and Alfredo ran to the boy’s side after the shooting. He rushed to him, and what I heard, what he told me, his eyes were closed, and he was just hurting, like, “Freddie, please help me. Please get some help. Don’t tell me this is happening”. That’s heartbreaking to hear that from a little kid,’ he said.
He added that the area has been getting more dangerous and residents want to see more police in the area. ‘They’re messing with little kids. They’re little kids trying to play tag. You know, when I was young, I was able to play tag. I was able to play football. I was having fun in the streets every day, every night; and now, in this neighborhood, you can’t do it,’ he said. ‘You’re out here playing tag, and you get shot.’
DCG