Woman killed, 2 others hurt in Chatham shooting near 79th, Evans

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A woman working in a real estate office was fatally shot in the head and two others were injured in a shooting in the Chatham neighborhood.

The family of 58-year-old Betty Howard is in absolute shock and said Thursday night this type of violence has never come this close to their family before.

Howard's family said she was a special education teacher at Gwendolyn Brooks Academy and also a real estate agent after school. She was inside the office in the 700 block of East 79th Street when shots rang out outside and bullets came through the store. One struck Howard in the throat and she later died.

"She was just a wonderful person. She taught special ed during the day. She was the only other woman in our family. She was just a family-oriented person. And something like this to happen to her is just, it's unreal," said Kristal Long, victim's niece.

"Not selling drugs. Not toting around guns. She's leaving a school, she was a school teacher. How can something so good be so wrong?" said Tamica Coleman, victim's sister-in-law.

Two other people were hit in that shooting. A 58-year-old man was grazed in the stomach by a bullet and a 23-year-old woman was also hit in the head. Both of them are going to be ok.

Eyewitness News is also told that Betty Howard is the sister of a Chicago police officer.