Chicago shooting kills 8-year-old girl and wounds 10 people including small children, police say

CHICAGO — Eleven people standing outside a family gathering Saturday night were shot including a young girl who was killed in what Chicago police believe was gang-related violence on the city’s South Side, police said Sunday.

Four victims were children. An 8-year-old girl was shot in the head and died, while a 1-year-old boy and a 8-year-old boy were each shot multiple times and listed in critical condition. A 9-year-old boy was also injured with a graze wound to his finger and hospitalized, police said Sunday.

The department’s Sunday statement updated the number of shooting victims to 11 from 8 and gave new ages for the victims compared with a news conference late Saturday.

No one was in custody Sunday.

Department Deputy Chief Don Jerome told reporters Saturday that the shooting happened when shots were fired at a crowd standing outside a family gathering around 9 p.m.

“This was not a random act of violence. It was likely gang-related,” Jerome said. “The offenders’ actions, make no mistake, are horrific and unacceptable in our city.”

Police responding to a gunfire alert applied tourniquets and chest seals to victims, who also included adults between the ages of 19 and 40, Jerome said.

A 36-year-old man who was shot in the arms and and back was listed in critical condition. The other adults were listed in good condition, police said Sunday.

The investigation was still in the preliminary stages but witnesses told police that a black sedan approached and someone fired shots into the crowd before fleeing, police said Sunday. Jerome also told reporters Saturday that witness accounts described two possible shooters on foot.