Chicago shooting victims' families feel police neglecting cases

CHICAGO (WLS) -- New concerns were raised Tuesday by some Chicago families and organizations troubled by shooting cases that have not been solved by Chicago police and who said police are not paying attention to their loved ones.

It was not a call to worship but a call to action at Grace Memorial Missionary Baptist Church in the city's North Lawndale neighborhood.

Pastor Marvin Hunter's family has felt the effects of violence in Chicago with the police shooting death of his great nephew Laquan McDonald in 2014 and, since then, the murders of two other nephews that have not been solved, including Cornelius Hunter.

"The police have just stood down," Pastor Hunter said.

"All I'm asking is for some help. It's been two years for my son and I haven't heard nothing... Nothing," Marketa Hunter-Wilson, Cornelius's mother, said.

"Sometimes years go by before they hear anything and they leave the cases open and the families just kind of feel that they're left out and nobody cares about the death of their loved one," said Pastor Hunter.

Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johns said the concern about CPD unsolved shooting cases is a valid one, but he emphasized the need for people who witness crime or have information to step up.

"We have been working with the State's Attorney's Office to help relocate people if they're concerned about their safety over these crimes, but we have to send a message to the people committing the crimes that we won't tolerate it," Johnson said.

"Ever since my son passed, I'm at home in fear. Every day," said Corniki Bornds, mother of 19-year-old Fontaine Sanders.

Sanders, a college student, was shot in the head in April after a basketball tournament in North Lawndale. He was also a great nephew of Pastor Hunter's. His mother said she feels like his murder is not a priority for Chicago police.

"If he was somebody else and he was killed somewhere else there would be consequences. You wouldn't be able to ride through here freely," she said.

Fontaine Sanders wanted to be a physical therapist. He had just gotten his grades and was passing all of his classes. He was also the drummer in his great uncle's church. His murder is now among the many unsolved murders under investigation in Chicago.