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Seven Teens, Including 13-Year-Old, Shot After Loop Riot Following Christmas Tree Lighting
CHICAGO – A festive evening in downtown Chicago quickly devolved into chaos last night, resulting in seven teenagers, one as young as 13, being shot following a riot in the Loop. The incident occurred just hours after the city’s official Christmas tree lighting ceremony in nearby Millennium Park.
The Chicago Police Department reported that the shootings took place around 9:50 p.m. near the intersection of State and Randolph streets. The victims, all aged between 13 and 17, sustained various injuries.
Alderman Brendan Reilly, whose second ward district encompasses the area, revealed that the disturbance involved “multiple police officers” who were attacked and injured with mace and stun guns, with at least one officer requiring hospitalization. Reilly stated that the free event was “overrun by as many as 300 young people” and that five victims were shot, with one in critical condition due to a life-threatening gunshot wound to the torso.
WGNNews reporter Courtney Spinelli confirmed that officers witnessed a large group emerge onto the streets shortly before shots were fired near the Chicago Theatre. Spinelli also reported that the youngest victim, a 13-year-old girl, was shot in the leg and is in fair condition.
The only other female victim, a 14-year-old, was shot in the hip. The remaining victims are males who sustained gunshots to the leg or graze wounds, all reported to be in good condition.
Witness Linda Dixon, who was leaving the Chicago Theatre as officers converged on the scene, described the sudden panic. “We’re coming out of the theater, and everybody just start running,” she told CBS.
“We almost got knocked in the street, because everyone was running that way from down here.” Dixon expressed her dismay, adding, “It is very disheartening to see this, you know?
Holiday time, everybody wants to celebrate and enjoy the evening, and something like this happens.”
Approximately 30 minutes later, a second shooting occurred nearby at Adams and Dearborn streets. An 18-year-old man was critically injured after being struck in the leg. Additionally, a second male victim, who sustained multiple bullet wounds, was pronounced dead at the hospital.