18-year-old Special Olympian with autism shot while waiting for bus in Auburn Gresham: VIDEO
Surveillance video shows the victim fleeing from the gunfire.
CHICAGO (WLS) -- A Chicago Special Olympian is recovering after being shot in the calf on Tuesday morning.
The 18-year-old victim lives with autism and other conditions.
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His parents say he has been shielded from the violence of Chicago until Tuesday, when went outside to catch the bus to school.
Chicago police were called to the 7800-block of South Carpenter Street in Auburn Gresham after someone fired shots at 7:24 a.m.
Surveillance video of the scene shows the victim trying to escape the gunfire. ABC7 has blurred him to protect his identity.
"He's done no wrong. My son hasn't hurt anybody, and he doesn't deserve to be shot at," his mother said.
His parents, who did not want to be identified, told ABC7 their son is a special needs student with several conditions, including being on the autism spectrum.
"We've been fighting to try and find things to help my son so that he can deal with his conditions, and to be shot at when he ain't never hurt nobody," his mother said.
They said their son has had a lifetime of testing, treatments and therapies, and now, he has become a victim of violence.
The victim, who has competed in Special Olympics Illinois for basketball, was taken to a local hospital with a gunshot wound to his calf.
"It's terrible, because my son is innocent, and all he wants to do is go to school. That's all he wanted to do this morning, was go to school," his father said.
Other bullets went into homes on the block and a car, and at that time of day, others could have been hurt.
"Bullets don't have no names, don't have no names at all. It's sad," said neighbor Jonathan Hannah.
"Shooting at innocent bystanders, young teens, for what reason?" the victim's father said.
"I devoted my whole life to taking care of my son, and you come into his life and shake up his world like this. How could you live with yourself? Stop the violence. You're hurting families," the victim's mother said.
The victim's mom says she prayed with her son before school on Tuesday, as has been their morning routine. Now, she says she prays for whoever did this find the courage to do the right thing and turn themselves in.
Chicago police continue to investigate.
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