Girl, 16, killed in drive-by shooting, police search for gunman

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A drive-by shooting ends in the death of a 16-year-old girl on Chicago's South Side. A man was also wounded in the attack in the 7200 block of South Laflin in the West Englewood neighborhood.

Shaquise Buckner was one of three siblings. Her favorite subject in school was math and she wanted to be a doctor, but those dreams were shattered when she was shot and killed early Saturday morning.

A small teddy bear and a candle sit in front of Buckner's home Saturday evening. Her family and friends share their memories and their pain.

"It's devastating," said Shakina Barnes, the victim's cousin. "She didn't really get to do what she wanted to do with her life."

A sophomore at Perspectives Charter School, the 16-year-old dreamed of being a doctor and moving up in the world, away from the violence that took her life early Saturday morning, when just around 1 a.m. Buckner was shot and killed just a few blocks from home in Englewood.

"She was like, 'I don't want to be here no more. I want to move out of town, I want to do better.' And she was. She was a straight A student. She stayed out of trouble," Barnes said.

Police say Buckner appears to have been the unintended target of a gang-related drive-by shooting. A 20-year-old man who was standing with Buckner was also shot and critically injured. Neighbors say they heard more than a dozen shots fired.

"As soon as I went in the door that's all you heard. The shots, coming, so many, so fast. For me and my son we were under the kitchen table," said neighbor LaWanda McCoullough.

Bullets scattered throughout the neighborhood, leaving holes in this gutter and the window frame of a senior citizens group across the street. Saturday, even those who did not know the teenager mourned her passing.

"Our children are not safe anymore to grow up and be children. Our children are carrying guns. And it's sad," said neighbor Donna Hill.

A candlelight vigil is planned for Sunday evening at her school.

In the meantime, police say that no arrests have been made in connection with her murder.