By Mitch Dudek, Chicago Sun-Times
A man was shot and killed Saturday along a block that Chicago Public Schools designated as part of a “Safe Passage” route for school children.
Ralph McNeal, 54, was killed about 6:17 p.m. on the 2900 block of South State Street, which was designated the previous day by CPS as a “Safe Passage” route for students walking to Drake Elementary School, about four blocks from where the shooting occurred. The “Safe Passage” routes are marked with yellow signs and will be lined with safety workers in yellow vests when schools open Aug.
26.
The new routes, which were announced Friday, build on an existing program and follow concerns for children affected by massive school closings who will be walking unfamiliar sidewalks, and possibly crossing gang lines, to get to their new schools.
The man was killed just outside the Dearborn Homes, a Chicago Housing Authority public housing complex.
Another man also was wounded in the shooting. A police spokesman said no one was in custody for the shooting as of 3:15 p.m.
Homicide Watch Chicago is dedicated to the proposition that murder is never a run-of-the-mill story. Attention must be paid to each one, not merely a select and particularly tragic few. We understand the reality of the public’s demand for news - that some stories get more attention than others. But all murders represent a degree of human suffering - direct and indirect - that cannot be ignored. Read more…