14-Year-Old Charged in Connection with Shooting of 4 Teens on Springfield Avenue in Lawndale Following Robbery on July 27, Police Report

CHICAGO (WLS) — A teenage suspect now faces numerous felony charges following a robbery and shooting on the West Side that left four teenagers injured earlier this summer.

The shooting took place at about 11:24 p.m. July 27 in the 700-block of South Springfield Avenue in Lawndale, Chicago police said.

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Police said a teen male suspect took out a gun after a verbal altercation and fired into a crowd standing outside, hitting several people.

A 14-year-old boy, shot in the chest, was taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition, according to police. A 15-year-old girl, shot in the leg, was listed in good condition at Stroger Hospital, police reported. A 16-year-old girl, who was shot multiple times, was in fair condition at Mt. Sinai Hospital. A 13-year-old boy, shot in the thigh, was also listed in fair condition at Stroger Hospital.

A suspect in the shooting, a 14-year-old boy, was arrested Wednesday, Chicago police said. He has not been identified.

Police said the suspect is also behind an armed robbery.

In July, community leaders convened just a block from the scene of the shooting, at Greater Rock Church, expressing their belief that the Lawndale community has been neglected by elected officials.

Faith leaders voiced their frustration with the big picture. They said neighbors live in fear of the violence on their streets in Lawndale.

“Our kids are left out. Our seniors are scared to come. They scared to come down here to the church. We shouldn’t have to live like this,” stated the Rev. Robin Hood.

Hood, the founder of Mothers Opposed to Violence Everywhere and pastor of Redeemed Outreach Ministries, is a long-standing community activist well aware of the repercussions of gun violence.

“When I heard the gunshot, immediately, my head dropped immediately because it was more than several gunshots. So, I took a walk down there, and to see the fear, to see senior citizens scared, to see children holler,” Hood recounted.

Hood says people on the scene told him a fight had occurred at the park on the corner of South Springfield Avenue and West Lexington Street. The reverend says he was told someone left, came back and fired shots.

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