Teen Parolee Held on $1M Bail for Alleged Role in Wrigleyville Shootout

Ralph Banks, 19 | Cook County Sheriff

LAKE VIEW (CHICAGO, IL) -- A suburban teen currently out on parole for a gun conviction is being held on $1 million bail for his role in a Wrigleyville shootout early Sunday morning where nearly 80 shots were fired.

Ralph Banks, 19, of the 2000 block of West Darrow, Evanston, was charged with one felony count of aggravated discharge of a weapon.

Police said Banks had been identified as one of the shooters in Sunday’s shootout a block west of Wrigley Field, in which several people took part in a gunfight.

Banks showed up at Presence St. Francis Hospital in Evanston with a gunshot wound to the upper back, but not by either officer, police said.

Cook County prosecutors said during a bond hearing held in the Leighton Criminal Court Building on Monday that police were at the nearby McDonald’s when they heard a barrage of gunfire.

The officers went toward the gunfire coming from the 1100 block of West Patterson. Confronted by two armed gunmen running toward them, the officers each fired a shot but no one is believed to have been struck, police and prosecutors said.

Both gunmen dropped their weapons and fled the scene. A police surveillance camera recording a person wearing clothing similar to Banks. Police recovered two .40 caliber handguns at the scene, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Banks later showed up at Presence St. Francis Hospital with a gunshot wound in the upper back. He was arrested without incident, police said.

According to illinois Department of Corrections records, Banks received an 18-month sentence for aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. He was paroled on Oct. 6.

Banks is due back in court on Dec. 21.

In an email sent out to his constituents, Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) said the incident occurred outside of a house party taking place on the 1100 block of West Patterson.

“I have been in constant contact with Commander Cesario and the 19th Police District as they are gathering more information on the shooting. The owner of the building is also being contacted to discuss the party where this event took place,” Tunney said in his email blast. “I believe this was an isolated incident and clearly not a normal occurrence for our neighborhood. I will continue to update neighbors as we learn more.”