3 killed, 15 wounded in Chicago weekend shootings
CHICAGO - Eighteen people were shot, three fatally, across Chicago in the first weekend of the year.
A shootout Sunday on the city’s Southeast Side left two people dead and two others wounded.
About 3:50 p.m., three men, 39, 27 and 20, were standing in the 10000 block of South Avenue M, when an unknown vehicle pulled up and two males jumped out, Chicago police said. Both males pulled out weapons and fired shots at all three men.
The 27-year-old man, who is a valid concealed carry license holder, pulled out his own weapon and returned fire, fatally striking one of the shooters, 17-year-old Michael E. Portis, police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office said. The other male got back into the vehicle and sped off. Elvis Garcia, 39, was struck in the leg and abdomen and rushed to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
The 20-year-old man was struck in the right arm and taken to Trinity Hospital where he was stabilized, police said. The 27-year-old was struck in the left arm and taken to the same hospital in good condition.
Saturday, a 49-year-old man was fatally shot by a security guard at a restaurant in Montclare.
The guard shot him during an “armed confrontation” at 1:47 a.m. in the 7100 block of West Diversey Avenue, police said. The man was pronounced dead at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood. He died of a gunshot wound to the neck, and his death was ruled a homicide, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
Two weapons were recovered at the scene, police said. Under a light snowfall, evidence markers, gloves and hats were scattered near the entrance of El Taconazo La Fiesta, 7146 W. Diversey Ave. Blood could be seen on the sidewalk outside as police examined a red vehicle by the door.
The guard was questioned and released without being charged, police said. The circumstances of the shooting remain under investigation.
In nonfatal shootings, a 27-year-old man was shot early Monday in Gresham on the South Side.
He was arguing with someone who shot him in the lower backside and groin at 2:44 a.m. in the doorway of a home in the 7900 block of South Emerald Avenue, according to police. An acquaintance drove the man to Trinity Hospital and he was transferred to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in critical condition.
Sunday, two men were wounded on the Near West Side.
About 8:10 p.m. they were standing on the sidewalk in the 1400 block of South Stewart Avenue, when two males got out of a black SUV and fired shots at them, police said. A 36-year-old was struck in the right leg and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was stabilized. A 28-year-old was struck in the back, legs and buttocks and taken to the same hospital in serious condition.
A shooting earlier in the day wounded two other men in Albany Park on the Northwest Side.
They were walking at 2:22 a.m. in the 3800 block of West Lawrence Avenue when they heard shots and felt pain, according to police. The victims told investigators they didn’t see the shooter or know where the shots came from, but that they saw someone in all black clothing running away from the area. A 26-year-old man was shot in the leg and was taken to Illinois Masonic Medical Center. The other man, 27, suffered a graze wound to the leg and was treated by paramedics at the scene. Both are in good condition.
A teenage boy was wounded Saturday in Austin on the West Side.
About 8:45 p.m., the 17-year-old was standing inside a residence in the 1000 block of North Central Avenue, when he heard gunshots and felt a pain, police said. He was struck in the right armpit and taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was stabilized.
Hours earlier, two people were wounded on the Near West Side.
The two males, whose ages were not known, were shot in their legs about 12:15 p.m. in the 2400 block of West Jackson Boulevard, police said. Their conditions were stabilized.
Saturday morning, two men were wounded in Garfield Park on the West Side.
The 18 and 19-year-olds were in the 4400 block of West West End Avenue about 9:15 a.m. when someone started shooting at them, police said. Both men were struck in the shoulder. They took themselves to Stroger Hospital in good condition.
The weekend’s first shooting wounded a man in Hermosa on the Northwest Side.
He was in a parked vehicle about 6:22 p.m. in the 1900 block of North Keeler Avenue when a silver-colored sedan drove by and someone inside opened fire, police said. The 31-year-old was hit in the leg and taken to Stroger Hospital in good condition, police said.
Two other people were wounded in shootings between 5 p.m. Friday and 5 a.m. Monday.
Additionally, a man who police said was a knife-wielding robbery suspect was fatally shot by police officers Saturday in South Shore. A community activist who witnessed the shooting disputed the police department’s account of the confrontation and said the man was being subdued with a stun gun when he was shot.
Gun violence last weekend left six people dead and 23 others wounded across the city.