Chicago Police: 15 People Shot, 3 Dead on Thursday

A Chicago police officer in a file photo. Scott Olson/Getty Images

Authorities in Chicago said that 15 people were shot, three of them fatally, across the city on Thursday.

The latest shooting left one person dead and another injured in the Austin neighborhood on the West Side of Chicago, police told the Chicago Sun-Times. A group was standing at 11:15 p.m. on the 4700 block of West Huron Street when a male approached them and opened fire, officials said.

The deceased individual was identified by officials as 39-year-old Corey Gilmore. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, said the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office, while the other man was shot in the arms and was taken to the same hospital in fair condition, the Sun-Times reported.

The second fatal shooting occurred when Noe J. Mondragon-Jimenez, 27, was walking in Little Village in the Southwest Side at 9:30 p.m. Two males got out of a dark-colored vehicle and shot him, police said, while officials said he was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

The first fatal shooting took place on 3:20 p.m. in the South Side’s Burnside neighborhood, authorities said. The man, who was not identified, was struck by gunfire, and no arrests have been made, according to the newspaper.

The violence comes as shootings are on the rise in Chicago. Over the past two weeks, four toddlers have been shot in the city.

“What was called the Windy City is now turning into the Bloody City. If we don’t stop this, then Chicago’s going to become known as not a safe place for children. Once that happens, we’ve lost the soul of our city,” said Rev. Michael Pfleger on July 2, according to USA Today.

“I’ve been here 45 years, and I’ve never seen the meshing together of hopelessness, despair and anger all together at this level. Because of that, we have the fallout of unacceptable behavior,” Pfleger said.

Over the Father’s Day weekend, more than 100 people were shot, and five minors died, police said. That included a 3-year-old child who was shot while his father was driving.

“Our city’s collective heart breaks to hear the unfathomable news of a 3-year-old boy who was shot and killed tonight on Chicago’s West Side,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot wrote at the time on Twitter. “There are simply no words to describe such a heinous, unconscionable act of cowardice to shoot at a toddler.”

Meanwhile, there are fears that the Fourth of July weekend, when temperatures are expected to soar, will produce yet another several days of bloodshed.

Lightfoot and other officials announced a Fourth of July weekend safety plan to combat violence and shootings.

“It’s not just on the police department. Not just on the fire department. Not just on elected officials,” Lightfoot said, according to ABC7. “All of us have to embrace our notion of community and think about what we can do, each of us in our own way, to make our communities safe and healthy and vibrant.”