A seven-year-old girl has died and her 29-year-old father has been admitted to hospital after being shot in a McDonald’s driveway on the West Side in Chicago, reports CBS Chicago. Late Sunday, police said the shooter or shooter was still at large.
It was part of another shooting weekend in Chicago in which at least two people died, including the little girl, and 22 were injured, CBS Chicago says.
According to the station, a Chicago police officer rushed Jaslyn Adams to a hospital after she was found in a bullet-driven car in a McDonald’s driveway. She was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Investigators said Jaslyn was hit several times around her body. According to family members, her father, Jontae Adams (29), was also hit.
Chicago police said he was shot in the upper body. He was taken to the same hospital as his daughter and was reported in a serious condition and is expected to survive.
At least 30 casings of the shell surrounded the vehicle after the shooting at 4:18 p.m., CBS Chicago said. The tinted windows on one side were blown out. There were also bullet holes in the frame and rear window.
It was not clear if the shooting was targeted, but authorities did not say the public was in danger. The Chicago Sun-Times says a McDonald’s employee who asked not to be identified said two people in a gray car drove out of the queue and started shooting at Adams’ car.
Family members spoke at the hospital about their loss to CBS Chicago.
“It’s really emotional for my family now,” said Jaslyn’s aunt, Tawny McMullen. She was in tears when she remembered the 7-year-old as funny and joyful.
“She was just the sweet and outgoing; really talkative; really sweet,” McMullen said.
Jaslyn’s grandmother says Jontae Adams called her as soon as the shooting happened, saying, ‘They shot my baby!’
“Please put the guns down,” McMullen said. “Our children want to play. My children can not even go out the door because of the violence. Please put down the guns.”
Relatives said it was normal for Jaslyn and her father to go to McDonalds.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said on Twitter on Sunday night about the shooting, saying she was “sad and angry” and putting an end to “the gun violence epidemic”.