CHICAGO — Eight people were wounded after gunmen opened fire at a party bus Wednesday night in the Old Town Triangle, making it the third mass shooting in just a few hours in Chicago.
The shooting happened 11:57 p.m. at 1647 N. LaSalle St., Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan said during a Thursday morning news conference. The driver of the party bus stopped so people could use the restroom at a gas station — but then people from three cars pulled up and shot at the bus.
Eight people were wounded, including the bus’s security guard, another bus employee and someone who was in the gas station, Deenihan said.
The gunmen drove off afterward, Deenihan said. Police said the gunmen used black and dark gray Jeep Grand Cherokees. There was no further description of them.
The victims are six men and two women, who were in critical to fair condition at various hospitals.
The violence came as Chicago was already reeling from two mass shootings that left 10 people shot on the West Side. A 15-year-old boy who was killed was among the victims from those shootings.
Deenihan and Supt. David Brown implored Chicagoans to speak up and turn in people who perpetrate violence.
“We are in a battle for the heart and soul of some of our communities,” Brown said. “And now is the time to speak up.”
The victims from the party bus shooting:
- A 27-year-old man was hit in his chest and dropped off at Northwestern Hospital, where he was in critical condition.
- A 23-year-old man was hit in his groin and was taken to Northwestern Hospital in serious condition.
- A 26-year-old woman was shot in her leg and was in serious condition at Northwestern Hospital.
- A 29-year-old man was hit in his arm and was in fair condition at Stroger Hospital.
- A 26-year-old woman was shot in her hand. She took herself to Jackson Park Hospital, where she was in good condition.
- A 24-year-old man was hit in his arm and was in fair condition at Northwestern Hospital.
- A 42-year-old man was hit in his leg and was in fair condition at Illinois Masonic Hospital.
- A 52-year-old man was hit in his leg and was in fair condition at Illinois Masonic Hospital.
Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) said he’s asked two nearby gas station owners to install cameras that will connect to the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications, so they can be monitored by police. The owners agreed and said they’ll hire private security, Hopkins wrote in a newsletter emailed to residents.
Hopkins has also contacted the city in hopes of installing a 360-degree camera at the intersection, he wrote.
No one was in custody. An investigation was ongoing.
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