Infant, father in critical condition after Little Village shooting
CHICAGO (CBS) — A baby and his father are in critical condition after a shooting in Chicago's Little Village neighborhood Saturday afternoon.
Chicago Police say the victims were in a car in the 3100 block of West 26th Street—a busy area—around 4:37 p.m. The family was in the car together, traveling through a short stretch between a parking lot and the road. Then, they were approached by an unknown vehicle. Two males got out of that vehicle and shot the victims before leaving the scene.
It all happened outside several businesses and in broad daylight.
The 3-month-old boy was shot in the upper chest. The infant's 21-year-old father was struck four times on the right side, a police officer said on the scene.
Both were taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition, police say. The baby was later transferred to Stroger Hospital, where he was being treated Saturday night.
An officer on the scene said the baby's mother was also in the vehicle, but it was unclear if she was injured.
A witness said she was standing just yards away from the gunfire. She was one of the many vendors lining the busy stretch of 26th Street and lives nearby. She said she was traumatized and conflicted about speaking about the situation because she does not want more problems for her neighborhood.
Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez released the following statement regarding the incident:
In recent weeks, months, and yesterday, our communities, and even more so, our children, have suffered from extreme acts of violence that not only have caused individualized pain, but continue to create an impact that is felt throughout our communities and affecting all generations within families in our communities.
Our hearts are with the young family & 3 month old infant who were targets of severe acts of violence yesterday in Little Village. This violence comes shortly after our communities suffered a tremendous loss in May, where two leaders in our community were tragically killed. These two people were local peacekeepers who regularly and courageously worked on immediate intervention cases to deescalate violence and keep our loved ones safe. Then earlier this past week, 3 other individuals were targeted in their homes where children and grandparents lived.
Every life among us is a gift, regardless of if that person and that soul has been with us for 3 months or 103 years. That enduring love of life that our communities should be centered around, that our communities should be uplifting, was not present during these reprehensible escalations in violence. We will not allow this violence to be normalized. Regardless of our differences, there is enough space in our communities for all of us. Our office is devoted to finding and implementing the solutions that will make these violent and heartbreaking tragedies far more scarce and we invite you to join us in continuing this work.
For residents who are seeking grief guidance or a space to build community to process these tragedies, we encourage you to reach out to our office at 773-523-4100. Residents who are interested in joining the community activation network can also reach out atWard25@cityofchicago.org. Our office is hosting our quarterly community meeting in Thursday, August 8th @ 2552 W. 21st St., where we will provide updates as to how we continue to build spaces of resilience, structure & safety.
Police said the shooting could be gang-related.
No one is in custody as Area Four detectives investigate.
