Jogger finds concealed carry holder shot in Hyde Park. Lack of ShotSpotter delayed emergency response by 45 minutes

A jogger found a man shot and critically injured in Hyde Park on Thursday morning, but the victim may have gone undiscovered for more than 45 minutes because the mayor disconnected the local ShotSpotter network in 2024, and the only call about gunfire in the area was not precise enough for police to locate him.

At about 4:06 a.m., a 911 caller reported hearing three shots fired near 55th Street and Cornell Avenue and seeing a car speeding away eastbound on 55th Street, according to CPD dispatch records. Officers responded and searched near the intersection, but did not find anything unusual.

More than 45 minutes later, at 4:54 a.m., police were sent to investigate a person shot call in the 5400 block of South Cornell Avenue after a jogger discovered a 31-year-old man shot near Cornell Park.

Officers found the victim with two gunshot wounds to his chest, one to his back, and one to his arm. CPD said he was taken to the University of Chicago Hospital in critical condition.

Police located three shell casings in the grass next to the street, near where the man was found. That detail suggests ShotSpotter would have pinpointed the location for first responders had the system not been deactivated by the mayor.

Officers at the scene said the victim had a firearm, and records indicate he is a concealed carry holder, according to a preliminary report. Police were investigating a lead that the car seen speeding from the area was a white Volkswagen recently stolen from Lincoln Park.

Ald. Desmon Yancy (5th) represents the block where the victim was found. He was among two-thirds of City Council members who urged Mayor Brandon Johnson to keep ShotSpotter active as its contract was expiring in September 2024.

“I don’t understand what we are going to do if we are not going to protect the people that live here,” he said at the time.

“ShotSpotter might be an imperfect solution to prevent gun violence, but 5th Ward residents support ShotSpotter,” he said at another event. “And for many, ending the use of this technology would make them feel less safe.”

About this series

At 12:01 a.m. on September 23, 2024, Chicago officially ended its use of ShotSpotter, the gunfire detection system that operated in the city’s most violence-plagued neighborhoods. The technology provided Chicago police with precise alerts about gunfire, often down to exact street addresses or specific spots like alleys, sidewalks, and gangways.

Mayor Brandon Johnson pressed ahead with the shutdown despite pleas from most aldermen, many residents, victims’ advocates, and even his own police superintendent, who wanted to keep it in place.

On this page, CWBChicago tracks cases where people were found shot in areas formerly covered by ShotSpotter—incidents where the system could have played a vital role in providing a timely response, especially when no 911 calls were made or callers gave vague or inaccurate details about gunfire locations.

Editor’s note: A case previously listed as #13 has been removed as of May 21, 2025, after the Cook County Medical Examiner determined the individual died by suicide in a fall from height.