Cops Kill Boy Who Was Firing Shots From Bicycle On West Side
UPDATED: 5/6/2013 3:00 p.m.
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Chicago police shot and killed a teenager on a bike Sunday, after the boy began shooting randomly at people near the street in the North Lawndale neighborhood.
CBS 2's Dana Kozlov reports it happened around 4 p.m. Sunday on the 1300 block of South Independence Boulevard. Witnesses described hearing more than two dozen gunshots, and seeing people running for cover before police arrived on the scene.
A police spokesperson said tactical officers happened to be driving on the other side of the boulevard when they heard the shots, saw the teen on the bike, and saw the gun in his hand. The officers made a U-turn, came up behind him, and when the teen started shooting at them, they shot back, hitting him.
The teen was pronounced dead a short time later at Mount Sinai Hospital. The boy was identified as 16-year-old Tywon Jones, of the 1600 block of South Hamlin Avenue, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office.
Some near the scene after it happened were upset, saying the teenager never fired at police and adding officers shot the alleged gunman in the back. Police said that's not the case.
Police Supt. Garry McCarthy said on Monday that he could not discuss Jones' criminal history because he is a juvenile, but added that it was not the first time police had been in contact with him.
"This kid was shooting into a crowd, and the officers were actually following him," McCarthy said. "He was on a bike and the officers were following him. When the kid became aware that the officers were following him, he turned the firearm on the car and fired at my officers a couple of times."
No one else was injured in the incident.
