A 15-year-old boy was shot and killed while walking home from school in Bronzeville Tuesday, and less than an hour later a 16-year-old boy was fatally shot near the University of Chicago campus.
Detectives were questioning suspects in both shootings.
The 15-year-old was shot twice in the head around 3:15 p.m. in the 3300 block of South Prairie Avenue, Chicago police said. He was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital and pronounced dead, police said. His name has not been released.
The boy was walking home from school when he was shot, Chicago Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said.
Shortly after the shooting, police took two people in for questioning.
A woman who works at a coffee shop near the shooting said the area is a “friendly neighborhood” but gun violence is “just getting out of hand and something has to give. And kids can’t walk home from school because people are acting crazy.
“Living in Chicago, you’re going to fear for your safety regardless whether it’s going to work or coming home from the store,” said the worker, who wanted to be identified only by her first name, Lena. “You can’t even go to a gas station to get gas or pick your child up without worrying about that. So I just try to stay alert and watch my surroundings while I’m outside.”
Around 4:10 p.m., a 16-year-old boy was shot in the head in the 6200 block of South Greenwood Avenue. Police said someone walked up to him and opened fire, then fled into a home on the block.
The boy was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center initially in critical condition, but later died, police said. His name hasn’t been released. A friend said the boy was alert when he was placed into the ambulance.
She said her friend was a “very spirited kid” who wasn’t involved in gangs and had recently moved to Chicago from Minnesota, against the advice from his family.
“I kept telling them that it was gonna be OK,” said the woman, who is 20 but did not want to be named. “He came over here to spread his wings.
“He’s a great helper, he likes to help us emotionally,” she said. “He’s always there for his friends, he’s very protective.”
Police said they were questioning a person of interest.
