Cook County Responds To Gang Funeral Shootings With 'Funeral and Cemetery Violence Task Force'
CHICAGO (CBS)-- A recently-created special task force targeting gang violence at funerals in Cook County hasn't been established long enough to have made a visible impact. Six people were shot Monday when more than 50 shots rang out at the funeral for a rapper known as Vantrease Criss, or "Dooski Da Man."
The massive shooting scene encompassed two blocks in the Burnside neighborhood, on the 9200 block of South Cottage Grove.
No one was in custody Monday night, and city officials said shootings at funerals for gang members are an increasingly-common occurrence.
"What we saw today was total savagery in our streets and mayhem," said Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin. "Frankly we must put an end to that."
Chicago police Sgt. Rocco Alioto described the scene following the shooting as "chaotic," and said it stretched two blocks long.
Among the six people who were shot, all survived. One is in critical condition, according to police.
Other shootings at funerals for gang members have prompted the creation of the Cook County Funeral and Cemetery Violence Task Force.
The task force is comprised of members of the Cook County Sheriff's Department, Chicago Police, the state's attorney's office and various owners of cemeteries and funeral homes.
The group was only created recently, however, so whether it will be effective remains unknown.
"There's no question about it--if there had been communication--of course we could have prevented what happened today," Boykin said.
