At least eight people were shot in about two hours late Saturday in the downtown area as looting and rioting ravaged Chicago’s central business district. One shooting victim died. Several robberies were also reported.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot ordered a citywide curfew between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. until further notice. But that did little to quell the mayhem that brewed throughout the day as protesters spoke out against the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis.
Chicago police arrested at least 400 people through Saturday evening, according to a source, but several dozen detainees were later released without being charged. As of 3 a.m., officers recovered at least nine handguns in the protest zone.
The police department has canceled all officers’ days off effective immediately and cops will work 12-hour shifts beginning today, First Deputy Supt. Anthony Riccio told officers in an email late Saturday night.
Cook County will operate at least four courtrooms for bail hearings Sunday, a source said. That’s twice the usual number.
Widespread looting and rioting slowed CPD’s release of official statements regarding shootings in the area. Here is a summary of Saturday night’s shootings in the downtown area that were either confirmed by police officers on-scene or by a department news release. Please note: Shooting locations for incidents not specifically confirmed by CPD may be different from where officers located the victims.
9:30 p.m. — Two men are transported to the University of Illinois Hospital in good condition after they’re shot on the first block of West Jackson in the Loop, according to a CPD media statement. No further information was immediately available.
9:34 p.m. — Two people with gunshot wounds pull up in a car and ask officers for help at State and Ohio streets. The men, ages 35 and 34, were shot on the 100 block of East Oak minutes earlier, according to CPD. They go to Stroger Hospital in good condition.
9:39 p.m. — Officers locate a man shot at 188 East Pearson near Water Tower Place. No further information is currently available.
9:53 p.m. — Police officers at Northwestern Memorial Hospital report that two people have walked into the emergency room with gunshot wounds. No further information about the circumstances of the shootings is currently available.
9:55 p.m. — A police sergeant encounters a woman with a gunshot wound at Division and Clybourn. An ambulance transports the woman. No police report is immediately filed.
9:57 p.m. — A man is shot in the leg near Michigan Avenue and Washington Street. Photojournalist Dominic Gwinn tweets that a police SWAT medic tended to the man until EMS arrived.
11:04 p.m. — A 26-year-old man is fatally shot, another is beaten with a handgun on the 100 block of West Hubbard, according to Chicago police. The two men were walking on the sidewalk when they became involved in an argument with a man who got out of a vehicle. The offender began beating one man with a handgun, he then fatally shot the other man in the chest, police said. After continuing to beat the first victim, he returned to his vehicle and fled. The shooting victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
11:14 p.m. — A 19-year-old man is shot multiple times on the 200 block of North Michigan, according to a CPD news release. A private car transports the victim to Stroger Hospital, where he is listed in critical condition.
11:39 p.m. — An officer confirms that a person is shot in the leg near the intersection of Wells and Ida B. Wells. No further details are available.
Several people reported being robbed in the protest zone Saturday, including Chicago Tribune photographer Erin Hooley.
“Looters in #Chicago shoved me on the sidewalk and took my cameras tonight,“ Hooley said on Twitter. “Thanks guys.”
CWBChicago will post updates throughout the day as details are confirmed and new developments emerge.
But the looters weren’t entirely successful.
In this video, two looters are slammed to the ground when a plate glass window falls on their heads. One of them is so stunned, he can merely lie on the sidewalk while others charge through the freshly-opened display window to steal the store’s inventory.
Here are some more videos and images of Saturday’s events in downtown Chicago: