7-Year-Old Boy Shot on South Side Wednesday

A 7-year-old boy walking near a park near 109th Street and South Loomis with two other boys was shot in the shoulder at about 3:30 Wednesday, and witnesses say he was shot by another child or young teen. He’s in serious condition at University of Chicago Comer Children’s Hospital.

One witness told NBC Chicago she heard five gunshots. A heavy police presence descended on the Morgan Park neighborhood after the shooting. ABC 7 Chicago is reporting that a “person of interest” is being questioned by police. Neighbors said the shooter appeared to be 12 or 13 years of age. They said a second child was also at the scene and may also have had a gun.

The wounded child, named Elijah, was scooped up by a woman who drove him to a friend’s house, where they called his mother and 911, reports DNAinfo Chicago.

Police said they did not believe the boy was the intended target of the shooting, but other witnesses said the shooter, described to DNAinfo Chicago as a child or young teenage boy, acted brazenly and made no secret of his actions.

“He wasn’t fast about it all. Usually if you do something wrong you’re running as fast as possible,” said a woman who saw the shooting from her kitchen window, adding that the shooter pulled out the gun, looked hesitant or nervous and didn’t take off running until after firing shots.

» more via DNAinfo Chicago