44 Shot, 9 Killed in Chicago Over Labor Day Weekend

44 Shot, 9 Killed in Chicago Over Labor Day Weekend
Police investigate a shooting in Chicago, Ill., in a file photograph. (Joshua Lott/Getty Images)
Zachary Stieber
9/3/2019
Updated:
9/4/2019

Nine people were shot dead in Chicago over Labor Day weekend with another 35 left wounded.

The shootings started on Aug. 31 just after midnight, when shots were fired on South Burley Avenue, leaving Willie Coker dead.

Later in the day, at least one person opened fire at a group of people on the South Side, killing two men and leaving three others, including one woman, wounded, the Chicago Police Department told WLS.

Another shooting on Saturday left one man wounded and another dead. He was later identified as 18-year-old Angel Perez.

The shootings continued through Labor Day, including four men getting shot near the King Drive CTA Green Line station around 11 p.m. They were expected to survive.

Early Sunday, 15-year-old Davantae Jackson was killed outside his house in the neighborhood of Austin two days before he was slated to start high school.

The teen was found shot at 2:20 a.m. and was pronounced dead at the scene. No arrests have been made as of Tuesday.

Jackson was one of nine people killed in Chicago over the weekend while 35 others were wounded, the Chicago Tribune reported. WLS reported that seven people were killed and 34 others were left wounded.

Davantae’s mother, Tracie Jackson, told the Tribune that her son was shot by someone he knew.

Her son was inside their house when his phone rang and he answered. Then he went outside and she heard gunshots.

“Knowing my son got killed right there, it’s indescribable,” said Jackson. “I’m numb right now.”

“It’s just unfortunate that our youth have to consistently have an environment like this,” added Austin District Police Cmdr. Ernest Cato. “This has to stop. And we’re not going to stop doing what we need to do to provide a better quality of life for these children.”

Jackson’s sister also said he was killed after being called to go outside.

“They called him and told him to come outside,” Alexis Jackson told WLS. “When they told him to come outside and he was guessing he was going to see his friends,” she said. “And they did what they did to him after they called his phone.”

Other shootings in the violence-riddled city included a 27-year-old man who was shot dead on Sunday, another man getting shot dead that day, and a 34-year-old woman getting hit in the foot before being treated.

The city’s continual violence attracted nationwide attention when Sen. Ted Cruz (D-Texas) took to Twitter to write: “Gun control doesn’t work. Look at Chicago. Disarming law-abiding citizens isn’t the answer. Stopping violent criminals—prosecuting & getting them off the street—BEFORE—they commit more violent crimes is the most effective way to reduce murder rates. Let’s protect our citizens.”

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot took to the social media platform to respond, writing: “60 percent of illegal firearms recovered in Chicago come from outside IL—mostly from states dominated by coward Republicans like you who refuse to enact commonsense gun legislation. Keep our name out of your mouth.”

Lightfoot has not responded directly to the rash of shootings in her city.

In 2018, Chicago saw at least 27 shootings over Labor Day weekend, with the death toll reported to be as high as six.

In 2017, eight people were killed, with at least 35 others wounded; in 2016, 13 people were killed out of 52 people shot in the city over the holiday weekend.