1-Year-Old Girl Shot, Wounded In South Chicago
UPDATED 08/23/11 5:58 p.m.
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A 1-year-old girl was wounded Tuesday morning in a shooting in the South Chicago neighborhood.
The shooting happened about 8:10 a.m. outside on the 8400 block of South Muskegon Avenue, according to police News Affairs Officer Robert Perez.
The child was with her 15-year-old aunt while the aunt walked the family's dog at about 8:11 a.m. when two gunmen between the ages of 16 and 19 opened fire at a man riding a bicycle, police said. The bicyclist fled, as did the shooters, police said.
The aunt fell to the ground with the baby in an effort to protect the infant.
Once the gunfire stopped it was found that the child "had visible trauma" to her head, Perez said.
The girl was taken to Advocate Trinity Hospital initially then transferred to Children's Memorial Hospital, where she underwent surgery, police said.
Police did not have a description of the shooter, and no one was in custody as of Tuesday afternoon.
The shooting happened around the corner from the infant's home, and a trail of blood lead from the site of the shooting back to the home before rain washed it away.
The baby's mother is a Chicago Public Schools senior, a neighbor said.
The teen lives with her sister, two brothers, their parents and the infant in a garden apartment of a home on the 8300 block of South Muskegon.
The infant's mother was discussing her prom dress with several neighbors Monday night, even though prom is months away.
"You know how girls are with their dresses ... she is from a good family," said the neighbor.
One neighbor said the shooters, and the man on the bike they were aiming at, are from the neighborhood. It was a gang dispute, the neighbor said.
"I heard him talking to police. He said he was as shocked to see the two gunmen as they were him. They started shooting and he pedaled off as fast he could trying to zig-zag to avoid the shots," said the neighbor.
Another neighbor, Sharita Johnson, said her boyfriend was walking her five-year old son, Darryl, to school when shots rang out.
"They were caught in the crossfire and my boyfriend was so shocked he left my son and found cover," said Johnson, who ran outside. "I yelled, 'My baby!' and ran and grabbed him and ran back in the house. He was frozen with fear."
Several neighbors said shootings in the area have increased in the last two years and the sound of gunfire is not uncommon.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
