Chicago gun violence: 41 shot, 5 fatally
During one 2½-hour period alone, 25 people were shot, police said.
Over three dozen people — including an 11-year-old — were shot Saturday night in Chicago, authorities confirmed, and at least five of those victims have died.
According to the Chicago Tribune, at least 41 people were shot from 11 a.m. Saturday through Sunday morning. During one 2½-hour period alone, 25 people were shot, police said.
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Victims families and friends were prevented from entering the emergency room at Stroger hospital as the staff was overwhelmed by the “unusually high volume” of trauma patients. Among the dead was a 17-year-old girl who was shot in the face.
“Over the past 24 hours, Stroger’s trauma unit received an unusually high volume of patients,” said Caitlin Polochak, the hospital’s communications manager. “At no time did Stroger go on bypass or ‘lockdown’ its trauma unit.”
Chicago police have the lowest clearance rate of any major city & the highest rate of police misconduct cases. They are literally a significant part of the problem. https://t.co/rT5iGCGEZd
— Mikki Kendall (@Karnythia) August 5, 2018
Chief of Patrol Fred Waller assured residents repeatedly that “this city will not be defeated” by senseless violence.“We can’t ever measure what we prevent…less victims, that’s how we measure our success,” he said.
Several family members of victims spoke with local reporters about the weekend tragedies, including Octavia White, whose daughter was one of the victims of a shooting in the 4700 block of West Gladys Avenue in West Garfield Park.
“I thank God it wasn’t her time,” White said.
“You have young kids crying, older people crying, it’s just so heartbreaking,” said Ald. Walter Burnett, 27th, who stopped by the hospital to speak with the families. “We try to give them some comfort, pray for them, and also at the same time try to encourage the young adult men not to try to get revenge.”
Waller addressed concerns about police presence and insisted that it’s not a lack of resources when it comes to law officials patrolling the streets. Over the weekend, several officers were tasked with working the annual Lollapalooza music festival, which redeployed them from communities.
