Girl, 15, critical after being shot in a truck near Buckingham Fountain, police say

Update 3 p.m. — In an updated statement, police said the 15-year-old was driving the truck on a learner’s permit with her mother as a passenger. The mother took control of the vehicle after the shooting and drove her daughter to the hospital.

A 15-year-old girl is in critical condition after being shot while riding in a pick-up truck with family members on Lake Shore Drive near Buckingham Fountain late Thursday, police said. She is the second person to be shot in a vehicle on the drive this week.

Police said the truck she was in, driven by a female relative, was stopped at a red light on the 500 block of South Lake Shore Drive around 11:37 p.m. As soon as the light turned green, someone opened fire on their vehicle from a four-door Ford Expedition, according to police. One round struck the girl in her stomach.

Another family member who was in the truck told police the victim’s party did not interact with the occupants of the Expedition, nor did they know who the offenders were, CPD said in a media statement. Chicago police have no history of contact with the victim or anyone who was in her vehicle.

The victim’s driver took her to MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn and the teen was subsequently transferred to Loyola Hospital in critical condition, police said.

Area Three detectives are investigating the shooting.

On Sunday, a 20-year-old man was shot in the face as he drove on Lake Shore Drive near the Field Museum. He was traveling southbound near Roosevelt around 12:14 a.m. when he heard gunfire and realized he’d been shot, police said. He pulled over just south of Soldier Field and sought help.

An officer said at least six bullets had struck the man’s vehicle. Cops found one shell casing in the roadway just south of Roosevelt Road. Police said the victim’s condition was stabilized at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

Several shootings have been reported on South Lake Shore Drive near Grant Park and Soldier Field over the past year:

  • On April 6, a 21-month-old boy was critically wounded when another man fired shots during a road rage incident just north of Roosevelt Road. Charges have been filed in that case.
  • On December 10, a 24-year-old man suffered two gunshot wounds when the passenger of another car opened fire on his vehicle in the 1800 block of South Lake Shore Drive.

Other shootings were reported on the 1900 block of South Lake Shore Drive on November 22; the 1500 block of South Lake Shore Drive on October 13; the 300 block of South Lake Shore Drive on October 11; and the 1100 block of South Lake Shore Drive on September 2, according to city data.

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