Eyewitness Accounts Detail Drive-By Shooting of 13-year-old Boy

A local teen-ager is in critical condition at Stroger Hospital following a drive-by shooting the morning of Sunday, May 16, 2021, on the 3700 block of South Wood Street in Chicago's McKinley Park neighborhood, police said.

According to eyewitness accounts of the incident, the 13-year-old boy was gunned down on the sidewalk around 7:50 a.m. by a shooter in a white SUV with tinted windows.

One witness, who wished to remain anonymous, said he first heard from his front porch two gunshots that he thought were fireworks. However, he hit the deck when six to eight more shots rang out, he said.

When he heard a vehicle accelerating, he looked and saw the white SUV, which turned at the end of the block to proceed west on 38th Street, he said.

Soaked With Blood

"When I walked across the street to see if he was OK is when I saw a boy ... laying on the sidewalk on his bike," the witness said.

"His hood looked soaked with blood near the neck and head," he said. "He wasn’t breathing and when I checked, he had no pulse."

Media reports and police list the teen-ager as being in critical condition as of time of publication of this article. The shooting is an active investigation with Area One detectives seeking suspects and information.

In a post to Facebook on Sunday, May 16, 12th Ward Alderman George Cardenas said that the shooting appeared to be gang-related.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call 911 or connect through the Chicago Police Department 9th District's community policing resources, including community policing Officer Jason Sollis (jason.sollis@chicagopolice.org) and Sgt. John Verta (john.verta@chicagopolice.org).