Nearly 100 people have been shot in Chicago in less than a week, pushing the number of shooting victims so far this year to more than 2,500 — about 800 more than this time last year, according to data kept by the Tribune.
Between last Friday afternoon and early Thursday, at least 99 people were shot in the city, 24 of them fatally. At least nine people were killed on Monday alone, the deadliest day in Chicago in 13 years, according to Tribune data. Among the wounded that day was a 10-year-old boy shot in the back as he played on his front porch in Lawndale.
The number of shooting victims in Chicago stood at 2,514 Thursday morning. At this time last year, 1,725 people had been shot. The city has not seen this level of gun violence since the 1990s, a trend the Police Department has blamed on lax gun laws and feuding gang factions.
Over eight hours from Wednesday evening through early Thursday, three people were killed and at least 10 others were wounded in the city.
A 45-year-old man was killed and two others were wounded when someone walked up to their van in the Gresham neighborhood around 1:55 a.m. Thursday, yelled "Hey" and started shooting, police said.
The three — two men and a woman — had been stopped at a stop sign in the 8000 block of South Marshfield Avenue when the gunman opened fire, police said. The van took off, made a left turn on 78th Street and stopped, police said.
The 45-year-old man was shot in the back and forearm. He was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn and was pronounced dead, police said.
The other man was shot in the right forearm and was taken to Stroger Hospital, where his condition was stabilized. The woman was struck in the hip and back. She was also taken to Stroger, where her condition was stabilized, police said.
About 10:20 p.m. Wednesday, a 22-year-old man died after being shot in the head in the West Pullman neighborhood on the Far South Side, police said.
Officers responded to a call of shots fired and found Stephan Triplett lying on the parkway in the 12400 block of South Lowe Avenue, police said. He was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 11:13 p.m., according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.
Triplett, who also spelled his Stephon in some public records, lived two blocks away in the 12400 block of South Emerald Avenue, the office said.
The third fatal shooting occurred around the same time, at 10 p.m., in the Near West Side neighborhood, police said.
A 22-year-old woman was in a car traveling west on Adams Street near Oakley Avenue when a black Hyundai sedan pulled up and someone got out and fired shots, police said. The gunman ran away as the Hyundai sped away, police said.
The woman was hit twice in the chest. She was driven to Mount Sinai Hospital, where she was pronounced dead, police said.
She was identified as Jamie Williams, of the 10600 block of South LaSalle Street, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office. She was pronounced dead at 10:19 p.m. after suffering a gunshot wound to the chest, the office determined following an autopsy Thursday.
Other shootings:
• Around 4 a.m. Thursday, a 31-year-old man was wounded in the 5200 block of West Quincy Street in the Austin neighborhood, police said. The man was shot in the lower back, and he was taken in fair condition to Mount Sinai Hospital, police said.
• Around 12:20 a.m., a 34-year-old man was critically wounded in the Lawndale neighborhood on the West Side, police said. The man was shot five times in the 4200 block of West Grenshaw Street. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition, police said.
• About 11 p.m. Wednesday, a 27-year-old man was wounded in the Marquette Park neighborhood on the Southwest Side, police said. The man was in the 7200 block of South Artesian Avenue when he was shot in the right foot. He was taken to a hospital but his condition was not known.
• About 10 p.m., a 20-year-old woman was wounded in the Longwood Manor neighborhood on the Far South Side, police said. The woman was in the 9600 block of South Wentworth Avenue when she was shot in the right foot. She was taken to Roseland Community Hospital, where she was listed in good condition, police said. Police said the woman was being uncooperative.
• About 9:20 p.m., a 24-year-old man was grazed in the South Chicago neighborhood on the South Side, police said. The man was walking in the 2400 block of East 82nd Street when someone sitting on a park bench took out a gun and fired, police said. The man was grazed and was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in good condition, police said.
• Paramedics were called to the 5600 block of South Wolcott Avenue about 8:55 p.m. and found two shooting victims, said Chicago Fire Department spokesman Jeff Lyle. One person was shot in the arm, the other was shot in the leg, Lyle said.
One of them was taken to Holy Cross Hospital, and an ambulance remained to treat the other person, Lyle said.
• About 8:25 p.m. on the Far South Side, a 32-year-old man was shot in the back in the 700 block of East 105th Place in the Roseland neighborhood, said Officer Thomas Sweeney, a police spokesman.
The man went to Roseland Community Hospital, Sweeney said.
WRD began in January 2010 at the height of the Obamacare debacle. Since then, WRD banded with a group of like-minded individuals to form the Gadsden Group, influencing thought by challenging bias at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, volunteering for Republican candidates, participating in numerous campaign events, networking with other groups of concerned citizens, and gaining a foothold in social media on Twitter. Our "Letter to to the Left" after Governor Walker's convincing win in the June 2012 recall election went viral, and we decided to officially expand this site to include the Gadsden Group name.
We hope this site will be a one-stop shop for great websites, articles, polls, conservative commentary, and more. 2010 was the year of the Republican comeback, and 2012 was off to a great start with the convincing win of Scott Walker, but we have much work to do after the Romney and Thompson defeats, and it's up to all of us to make it happen. Share with friends, convince your kids, do your part to get our great country back! Thanks for visiting our site! Wisconsin Republican Dad and everyone in the Gadsden Group
WRD: I'm just a dad and husband who's very worried about the direction this country is going, and decided it was time I got involved. I believe in fiscal restraint, personal responsibility, a much smaller goverment, fewer government programs, agencies, and entitlements, strong national defense, and justice for criminals. I want our borders strengthened, tort reform, a balanced budget, and deficit reduction. I believe in Constructionist judges, not liberals who legislate from the bench. I'm pro gun, I'm for expanding nuclear power and offshore drilling. By default, that makes me a conservative Republican. The liberals are killing this country, and worse, they know it. Their desire to be liked, to be seen as champions of the poor, while they continue to grow the welfare state, bothers me greatly. Because arrogance is the worst of human traits, their condescension (that means you Russ Feingold) towards middle America makes me want to scream. So I am...
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