The teenager was shot around 9 p.m. near 88th Street and Exchange while standing with a group of friends. Crisis counselors are at nearby Bowen High School, where the victim attended, to help classmates cope with the shooting.
"My son and I were watching TV. We heard consecutive gunshots, at least 15 or 16 consecutive gunshots. I told my son right away get down, duck," said Evelyn Mirreles, resident.
Investigators spent several hours talking to witnesses and searching for clues. They are also reviewing the police cameras on the block to see if it captured images of the shooting.
"I did see the wounded boy. There were three of them together. At first I wasn't sure if any of them had gotten shot because they looked like they were walking OK. Until halfway down the block I saw he fell down," said Mirreles.
He is the second child to be shot in the neighborhood in less than a week. Residents in the South Side neighborhood said they have felt under siege in recent days. Last Thursday, exactly two blocks to the west, a 12-year-old girl was shot while in her home. Police said she was caught in gang crossfire.
A 15-year-old boy is charged with that shooting.
"At one point I thought it was getting better because everybody was just outside all day long. But now I don't see that too much no more," said Grant Jackson, resident.
Mirreles' brother was killed in gang violence 1997. "My brother is probably turning over in his grave right now."
