2 killed, 16 wounded in Chicago weekend shootings so far

CHICAGO - Two men were killed and 16 other people, including a Chicago firefighter, were wounded in shootings over the weekend citywide as of Sunday morning.

The latest fatal shooting happened early Sunday in Little Village on the Southwest Side.

A man and a woman were riding in the back seat of a southbound vehicle at 2:56 a.m. in the 3100 block of South California Avenue when a dark-colored SUV pulled alongside them at a red light, according to Chicago police. Someone in the SUV opened fire before it fled eastbound on 31st Street.

The driver of the victims’ vehicle took them to Saint Anthony Hospital, police said. The 23-year-old man was shot in the side, back and leg and was pronounced dead. The woman, 20, was shot in the hip and was listed in fair condition.

The Cook County medical examiner’s office has not released details the fatality.

Another man was shot to death several hours earlier in the same neighborhood.

Eduardo A. Garcia, 20, was standing on the street at 11:37 p.m. Saturday when someone shot at him from a black sedan in the 2200 block of South Whipple Street, police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office said. Garcia, who lived in Little Village, was hit multiple times and driven by friends to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 11:50 p.m.

The firefighter was injured early Sunday while responding to a car fire in Albany Park on the Northwest Side.

The 36-year-old firefighter was at the scene of the car fire at 1:02 a.m. in the 3300 block of West Wilson Avenue when someone fired shots and hit him in the leg, according to Chicago police and fire officials. He was taken to Illinois Masonic Medical Center in fair condition.

Another man was wounded in a shooting Sunday morning on the Dan Ryan Expressway in Englewood on the South Side.

llinois State Police troopers were called about 2:55 a.m. for reports of a crash on southbound I-94 near 63rd Street, state police said. They arrived to find a man with a gunshot wound inside the vehicle. He was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, but his exact age and condition were not immediately known.

Minutes earlier, a 20-year-old man was critically injured in Gage Park on the Southwest Side.

He was on the street at 2:53 a.m. in the 5100 block of South Sacramento Avenue when a dark-colored SUV drove up and someone inside started shooting, police said. The man was hit multiple times and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition.

Half an hour before that, a woman was shot and critically hurt while driving in West Rogers Park on the North Side.

The 35-year-old was driving a vehicle with a relative in the passenger seat about 2:25 a.m. when a silver Mercedes pulled alongside them in the 2400 block of West Granville Avenue, according to police. A male in the Mercedes fired multiple shots, hitting the woman in the back and grazing her left arm. The family member drove her to Saint Francis Hospital in Evanston, where she was listed in critical condition.

Late Saturday night, another man was critically wounded in Austin on the West Side.

The 23-year-old was getting into a vehicle at a gas station at 11:07 p.m. in the 5100 block of West North Avenue when someone in a red sedan fired shots at him, police said. He was hit multiple times and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition.

Just over half an hour earlier, another man was shot in Morgan Park on the Far South Side.

The 32-year-old was standing on the sidewalk at 10:24 p.m. in the 11100 block of South Vincennes Avenue when a red vehicle drove up and someone inside shot him in the leg, according to police. He was taken to Roseland Community Hospital in fair condition.

On Saturday morning, two men were shot in East Garfield Park on the West Side.

They were standing on the sidewalk at 2:53 a.m. in the 200 block of North Pulaski Road when a male walked up and fired shots, police said. A 39-year-old man was shot in the groin and taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition. The other man, 32, was shot in the right foot and right hand and was also taken to Stroger in good condition.

The weekend’s first shooting left a man grazed by a bullet Friday evening in Gresham on the South Side.

The 19-year-old was walking at 5:57 p.m. in the 1100 block of West 88th Street when he heard gunfire and felt pain, according to police. He was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn with a graze wound to the back and his condition was stabilized.

Six other people were wounded by gunfire across Chicago between 5 p.m. Friday and 5 a.m. Monday.

Last weekend, two people were killed and 14 were injured in shootings within the city limits.