Chicago sees deadliest Memorial Day weekend in years: 10 fatally shot, 39 wounded

CHICAGO - Ten people died and 39 others were wounded in weekend shootings in Chicago — the deadliest Memorial Day weekend since 2015, when 12 people were killed.

Despite the state’s stay-at-home order, the weekend’s death toll has already surpassed last year’s holiday weekend, when seven people were killed and 34 were injured during the period from 5 p.m. Friday through 5 a.m. Tuesday.

In 2018, seven people died and 30 others were wounded. In 2017, six people were killed and 44 others were wounded. In 2016, six people were killed and 56 wounded.

At the beginning of Memorial Day weekend — the unofficial start of summer — Chicago Police Supt. David Brown announced opening a Summer Operations Center to centralize police resources in an effort to tamp down on summer gun violence.

The most recent fatal shooting was Monday evening in Garfield Park on the West Side.

Two men, 45 and 52, were standing on the sidewalk about 8:30 p.m. in the 2800 block of West Wilcox Street when someone in a white sedan fired shots, Chicago police said.

The 45-year-old, who was shot in the head and torso, was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital, police said. The Cook County medical examiner’s office hasn’t released details about his death.

The older man was shot in the leg and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition, police said.

On Sunday afternoon, a person was fatally shot in Rosemoor on the South Side. About 3:05 p.m., a male was in a vehicle in an alley in the 400 block of East 103rd Street when someone walked up and fired shots, police said. He was shot in the face and chest and taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was pronounced dead.

Earlier Sunday morning, a man was killed in Humboldt Park on the Northwest Side.

About 7:45 a.m., a ShotSpotter notification alerted police of the shooting in the 1000 block of North Drake Avenue, police said. Officers found the man, 21, with a gunshot wound to his head and notified Chicago firefighters. Dariontae Adams was taken to Stroger Hospital and pronounced dead, the Cook County medical examiner’s office said.

A 45-year-old man was killed several hours before that in Grand Crossing on the South Side.

He was standing on the sidewalk at 3:52 a.m. in the 7800 block of South Ingleside Avenue when someone fired shots from a black SUV, according to police. He was hit in his left side and later died at the University of Chicago Medical Center.

Another man was killed late Saturday night in Humboldt Park on the Northwest Side.

The 28-year-old man was found on the sidewalk with a gunshot wound to the head at 11:08 p.m. in the 3400 block of West North Avenue, police said. Two males were seen running from the scene. The man who was shot, identified as Alejandro Castro of Humboldt Park, was pronounced dead at Mount Sinai Hospital, authorities said.

About an hour before that, a teenage boy was shot to death in Washington Park on the South Side.

Someone approached 16-year-old Darnell Fisher about 10:05 p.m. in the 6100 block of South Indiana Avenue and shot him in the chest and arm, authorities said. The boy was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center and pronounced dead. He lived in Washington Park.

A person thought to be the shooter was taken into custody blocks away in the 5900 block of South Prairie after leading officers on a chase, police said. A weapon was recovered. That person was later released without being charged.

Several hours before that, another man was found shot to death in Longwood Manor on the South Side.

Keith Moore, 32, was discovered in a home about 7:46 p.m. in the 1300 block of West 97th Place with a gunshot wound to the armpit, authorities said. Moore, who lived in Bronzeville, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Earlier that evening, a man was killed and three others were wounded in Lawndale on the West Side.

About 6:25 p.m., a group of people was outside a home in the 3900 block of West Grenshaw Street when someone in a vehicle pulled up and opened fire, authorities said. Antonio Gasaway, 35, was struck in the chest and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Another man, 23, was shot in the arm, police said, while a 26-year-old man was struck in the leg. Both were taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in fair condition. A fourth man, 43, was grazed on the arm and refused medical attention.

Saturday morning, a 27-year-old man was shot to death in Englewood on the South Side.

He was found unresponsive with a gunshot wound to his abdomen at 6:05 a.m. at a home in the 5900 block of South Justine Street, police said. He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. The medical examiner’s office identified him as Jamal Daveny of Bronzeville.

A man was found shot to death in the weekend’s first homicide Friday night in Englewood.

Tobias McNeal, 41, was discovered lying on the sidewalk about 11:26 p.m. in the 5600 block of South Paulina Street with gunshot wounds throughout his body, authorities said. McNeal, who lived in the same neighborhood, was pronounced dead at the University of Chicago Medical Center.

In nonfatal attacks:

• A woman and two men were wounded Monday in a shooting in Humboldt Park on the Northwest Side. About 11:30 p.m. they were hanging out on the sidewalk in the 1000 block of North Hamlin Avenue, when they saw a male chasing another male and then heard multiple gunshots, according to police. The woman, 36, was struck in the right arm and lower back, police said. A 33-year-old man was struck in the right shoulder and a 44-year-old man was struck in twice in abdomen and once in the left leg, police said. They were all taken to Stroger Hospital and are in good condition.
• A 15-year-old girl was grazed by a bullet Monday morning in West Pullman on the Far South Side. She was on a porch at 5:09 a.m. when someone fired shots in front of the building on Wallace Street, according to police. She suffered a graze wound to the leg and was taken to Roseland Community Hospital in good condition.
• Early Saturday, a 15-year-old boy was shot multiple times Saturday in South Shore. He got into an argument at 12:49 a.m. with the driver of a blue SUV, according to police. The driver then got out and shot the teen in the face, chest and abdomen. The boy was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital in critical condition.
• A shooting early Monday left a man seriously wounded in Cottage Grove Heights on the South Side. The 30-year-old was standing on the street at 3:22 a.m. in the 9800 block of South Ellis Avenue when someone fired shots from a white vehicle, police said. He was shot in the chest and back and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in serious condition.
• Less than an hour before that, another man was critically wounded in Englewood. Officers responded to reports of the shooting at 2:34 a.m. and found the 53-year-old in the street in the 7300 block of South Paulina Street, police said. He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition with gunshot wounds to the buttocks and back.
• Minutes earlier, another man was shot in Woodlawn on the South Side. The 23-year-old was standing on a rear porch at 2:28 a.m. in the 6500 block of South Drexel Avenue when someone fired shots from a white sedan, according to police. He was hit in the right hand and right leg and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in fair condition.
• About 20 minutes before that, two men were shot in Gresham on the South Side. The men, both 45, were standing on the street at 2:08 a.m. when someone in a gray sedan fired shots in the 8800 block of South May Street, police said. One man was hit in the left leg and the other was shot in the right foot. Both were taken in fair condition to Little Company of Mary Hospital.
• The weekend’s first shooting left a man wounded Friday night in Chatham on the South Side. The 21-year-old was getting out of a vehicle about 9:17 p.m. in the 7900 block of South State Street when someone opened fire, police said. He was hit in the pelvis and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in fair condition.

At least 28 other people have been wounded by gunfire in Chicago.

Last weekend saw six people killed and 32 others wounded in gun violence throughout the city.