A massive gathering of teenagers in downtown Chicago on Friday night led to violence, with two teens injured and a dozen people arrested, according to police.
An estimated 300 teens congregated for about four hours, causing disruption in the area. Chicago police confirmed Saturday that two adults and ten juveniles were taken into custody, though details on their charges have not yet been released.
The night took a violent turn when an 18-year-old male was stabbed inside a store in the Loop around 8:45 p.m. on North State Street. Police say an altercation broke out among a group of teenagers, and one individual pulled a knife, stabbing the victim in the back before fleeing. The injured teen was transported to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in fair condition.
About an hour later, gunfire erupted in Streeterville, leaving a 15-year-old boy with a graze wound to the leg. The shooting occurred just after 9:40 p.m. near North Cityfront Plaza Drive. Officers responding to the scene saw a large group fleeing and found the injured teen on the ground. He was taken to Lurie Children’s Hospital and is expected to recover.
“No one wants to see the reckless and dangerous behavior that was exhibited last night and we are not going to tolerate that in our city. Our police department is currently investigating the incident, and all those who have caused chaos will be held accountable,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said.
“We continue to have a serious problem with guns in our city. These guns do not come from Chicago. Just last year, we removed 12,000 guns from the streets of Chicago, but we must do more to stop the endless flow of weapons into our city.”
“As far as the neighborhood curfew is concerned, I am not in favor of the proposal because it would just displace these young people into the nearest neighborhood. It’s not productive to shift the problem to the next community over. What we have to do is enforce the current citywide curfew law that we already have in place before we consider additional measures,” he continued.
“And we need to make sure that there are additional safe spaces for our young people this spring and summer. We are calling on our City Department, our civic community, our business community, our philanthropic community, and our faith community to lean in and keep working with us to create even more spaces and opportunities for our young people this year.”
Authorities have not disclosed whether the two incidents were connected. The investigation is ongoing.
