CPD Officer, Teen Suspect Believed Hit By Same Bullet: Snelling

CHICAGO — A Chicago police officer and a teen were both struck by gunfire when a handgun carried by the teen inadvertently discharged Thursday afternoon in Englewood, CPD Supt. Larry Snelling said in an afternoon news conference.

Around 12:30 p.m. in the 5600 block of South Shields Avenue, officers conducted an “investigatory stop” when the superintendent said officers noticed the teen was carrying a handgun.

“As those officers were attempting to recover the handgun from the waistband area, in the front of this individual, the weapon inadvertently discharged, striking the individual in the groin area,” Snelling said. “That same bullet is believed to have also struck the officer in the leg.”

The superintendent added that both wounds were “through and through.”

The officer, who has been with the Chicago Police Department since 2018, is in good condition at University of Chicago Medical Center. The 16-year-old boy was taken in stable condition at Stroger Hospital. Both are expected to be okay, Snelling said.