Chicago shootings left at least two people dead and 19 others injured this weekend, according to the Chicago Police Department.
The violence began Friday night when a 45-year-old man was fatally shot inside an apartment complex in the South Side's Hermitage neighborhood. Responding officers found him with a gunshot wound to the back and rushed him to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Another man was found dead early Saturday morning inside a vehicle in an alley in the South Side's Union Avenue neighborhood. He had been shot in the head.
The other shootings occurred throughout the city, with the majority of them taking place on the South and West Sides. Among the victims were a 9-year-old boy, who was shot in the leg, and a 10-year-old girl, who was shot in the abdomen. Both children were hospitalized in stable condition.
Four Chicago police officers were also injured in a car crash while pursuing shooting suspects in the Washington Park neighborhood. The officers were all treated for minor injuries and released from the hospital.
The weekend's gun violence comes as Chicago continues to grapple with a high rate of shootings. In 2022, there were over 4,000 shootings in the city, resulting in nearly 800 deaths.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has called the city's gun violence epidemic a "public health crisis." She has pledged to invest more resources in violence prevention programs and to work with the Chicago Police Department to crack down on illegal gun trafficking.
However, critics say that Lightfoot has not done enough to address the root causes of gun violence, such as poverty and inequality. They are calling for the city to invest more in affordable housing, education, and job training programs.
The weekend's shootings are a reminder of the urgent need to address gun violence in Chicago. The city's leaders must take bold action to reduce the number of shootings and save lives.
CHICAGO (October 8, 2023) - At least two people were killed and 19 others were shot in Chicago this weekend, according to the Chicago Police Department. The violence began on Friday night, when a 45-year-old man was fatally shot inside an apartment complex in the South Side's Hermitage neighborhood.
