Officers with the Chicago Police Department were attacked by gang members last week while trying to provide life-saving aid to people who had been shot.
According to officials, two rival gangs began firing at each other just before 5 p.m. on May 10 in the 4800-block of South Ada Street. One person was killed and four others were wounded in the gunfight.
“Officers immediately attempted to perform life-saving measures on those that were shot, and they were met by a hostile crowd,” police Commander Don Jerome of the Ninth District told reporters, according to CNN. “Members from the community and gang members from this crowd were actively fighting the police while they were trying to attend to the victims.”
Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown said the violence erupted after one gang was spotted driving by a rival gang in a stolen Mazda. Brown said gang members “began assaulting police officers” when they arrived on scene.
Brown said gang-related violence has recently ramped up in the city due to the killing of a high-ranking gang member’s brother, 28-year-old Sergio Barron.
The high-ranking gang member had just been released on parole after serving time in prison for gun crimes and assaulting police. He was also arrested earlier this year for possession of a weapon by a felon, but he was freed on cash bond.
Brown said Chicago police are working with the US Attorney’s Office and the State’s Attorney’s Office to revoke his bond “get him back, this high-ranking gang member who’s driving this violence as retaliation for his brother’s murder.”
Officials said the death of the gang member’s brother has led to a 100 percent increase in homicides on the city’s South Side when compared to last year. Shootings have also increased by 48 percent since 2021.
“He’s driving the retaliatory violence,” Brown said.
Brown said Chicago judges need to be tougher on gun violence cases that involve shooters with a criminal history.
“There needs to be a better risk assessment by judges,” he said, as reported by ABC 7. “The police did their job. That felon got a cash bond.”
Elsewhere, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot banned unaccompanied minors from visiting Chicago’s Millennium Park after a minor was killed near the iconic location over the weekend.
“Earlier this evening, a 16-year-old was tragically killed near Millennium Park. This senseless loss of life is utterly unacceptable,” Lightfoot said in a statement announcing the curfew, Fox News reported “Tonight, a mother is grief-stricken, mourning the loss of her child and searching for answers. My heart is breaking for the mother as she grieves this unspeakable loss.”
“This new policy will be strictly enforced and violations will be dealt with swiftly. All of our residents and visitors under the age of 18 are welcome at the Park during the evening hours as long as they are accompanied by at least one responsible adult,” Lightfoot said.
