5 people shot, seriously wounded in mass shooting after fight in Lawndale
CHICAGO (CBS) – Chicago's West Side is the scene of the city's latest mass shooting. Five people were in serious condition Sunday after neighbors say a fight broke out on the street outside an elementary school.
Now the neighborhood is calling for change, and leaders say mass shootings across the country are changing the conversation about gun reform.
"Where do they get these guns from? Where do they get these Army rifles from?" said Arthur, who did not want to give a last name.
After 50 years living in the Lawndale neighborhood, Arthur said he now won't come out after dark. He showed CBS 2's Marissa Perlman a stray bullet he found on his afternoon walk.
"It's always been rough around here," he said. "It's worse now."
Around 1:30 Sunday morning, five people, including a 16-year-old girl, were shot near Daniel Webster Elementary School.
"I don't understand how everyone 18 to 25 has a gun," Arthur said.
Police said the group of people were on South Karlov when a fight broke out, and within seconds shots were fired. Hours later, bullets lined the sidewalk where that fight happened.
"They bring them outside and they use them. It's scary," said Arthur.
Chicago -- in the middle of a gun violence epidemic -- is often used as an example when it comes to gun reform. The city has had the most mass shootings in the United States since 2018.
But local leaders, like Democratic U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, say in the aftermath of the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, the discussion is changing.
"I sense a different feeling among my colleagues after Uvalde," Durbin said. "It is time for us to do something. People are sick and tired of political excuses."
Adam Kinzinger, a Republican congressman from Illinois, said many of his fellow Republicans are scared of inaction, despite voting against bans in the past, and would now consider a ban on assault weapons.
"I think I'm open to a ban now," he said. "It's going to depend on what it looks like. We have to be coming to the table with ways to mitigate 18-year-olds buying guns and walking into schools. My side's not doing that."
The five victims in Sunday's shooting range in age from 16 to 33. A 21-year-old man was struck in the left side of his body and sent to Stroger Hospital. The other four victims were all transported to Mount Sinai Hospital. A 21-year-old woman was shot in the left arm. A 21-year-old man was also struck in the left arm. A 16-year-old girl was shot in the back. And a 33-year-old man was shot in the face.
So far no one is in custody. Area Four detectives are investigating.
