Homicide Watch Chicago

Julian High School graduate Jeremy Tang, who was taking a semester off college to work, was shot to death Sunday night while sitting in his vehicle in the Washington Heights neighborhood on the Far South Side.

Tang, a 20-year-old Beverly resident, was found with a gunshot wound to the chest about 8:40 p.m. in the driver’s side of a vehicle in the 800 block of West 102nd Street, according to Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

Tang, who lived about a mile away in the Beverly neighborhood, was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was pronounced dead at 9:53 p.m., authorities said.

Tang was a 2015 graduate of Julian, where he played high school football. He was an honor roll student at Miles College in Fairfield, Alabama, according to family members. But had decided to take a semester off, and was working two jobs, including one at FedEx, to help finance a return to school.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Gatlings Chapel at 10133 S. Halsted. Viewing will be 49 p.mm. Monday, September 11, and at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, September 12. The funeral service will begin at noon Tuesday.

—Chicago Sun-Times Wire

Marrio “Rio” Battles, a west suburban resident, was found shot to death early Saturday in the West Side Austin neighborhood.

The 39-year-old Battles was found lying on the ground with gunshot wounds to the head at 5:02 a.m. in the 1000 block of North Waller, according to Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

Battles, a resident of Hillside, was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 5:40 a.m., authorities said.

An autopsy Sunday found he died of multiple gunshot wounds to the head, and his death was ruled a homicide, according to the medical examiner’s office.

No one was in custody as of Tuesday.

—Chicago Sun-Times Wire

Monticello Scott and John Smith were shot to death Thursday afternoon in the Lawndale neighborhood on the Southwest Side.

Scott, 26, and Smith, 24, were outside about 3:20 p.m. near Scott’s home in the 1400 block of South Springfield, according to Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

That’s when someone got out of a dark-colored sedan and began shooting at them, police said.

Both men were pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said. Autopsies conducted Friday found Scott died from a gunshot wound to his chest, and Smith died after suffering multiple gunshot wounds.

The shooter got back into the vehicle and drove away. No one was in custody as of Tuesday morning.

The shooting happened a few blocks from where three people were shot Thursday morning in North Lawndale and a block away from where three men were shot late Wednesday.

—Chicago Sun-Times Wire

Felipe Bautista Jr. was killed and another wounded in a shooting Sunday night outside his home in the Belmont Central neighborhood on the Northwest Side.

Bautista, 26; and a 29-year-old man were standing on the sidewalk about 10:40 p.m. in the 5900 block of West Belden, according to Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

A male suspect walked up and opened fire, police said.

Bautista was shot in the torso, police said.

Family members said he fell into his father’s arms, where he died. He was pronounced dead at the scene less than 20 minutes later, authorities said.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family with funeral expenses.

Jerry Bautista, who started the page, wrote that while he worked for Life Fitness, Felipe’s true love was working on cars.

“Learning to work on cars became his passion.. always offering to help anybody who needed help with their cars in return for at times nothing but simply gain experience doing what he loved.

“He had recently settled into a job at Life Fitness in which he enjoyed traveling within the states for weeks at a time and had returned home for Labor Day only to be brutally shot and pass away in his father’s arms. Our family migrated here from Mexico in search of a better life, not this.”

The older man was shot in the abdomen and was taken in critical condition to Illinois Masonic Medical Center, police said.

No one was in custody as of Tuesday morning.

—Chicago Sun-Times Wire

Four people were hanging out on a porch early Saturday in the South Side Gresham neighborhood when gunshots rang out. When it was over, James E. McChristian was dead, and two women and another man were wounded.

The group was sitting on the front porch of a house about 1:20 a.m. in the 8300 block of South Hermitage when three people got out of a white car parked behind the house, walked up to them and opened fire, according to Chicago Police.

McChristian, 26, was shot in the chest and abdomen, and was pronounced dead at Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, police said and the Cook County medical examiner’s office said. He lived in the same block as the shooting.

A friend said of McChristian, a father of two who was known as “Beeg”: “one of the most coolest guys in the area, a stand up guy, a father, a working man…”

The other man, 23, was shot in the shoulder, police said. He was listed in good condition at Christ Medical Center.

A 25-year-old woman was also taken to Christ, where she was treated for gunshot wounds to the arm and abdomen, according to police. Her condition was stabilized.

Another woman, 23, was shot in the leg and was listed in good condition at Christ, police said.

There were no suspects in custody as Area South detectives conduct a homicide investigation.

—Chicago Sun-Times Wire

Aaron Gordon was struck in the face by a stray bullet as he shielded his girlfriend from gunfire aimed—haphazardly—at another man during a fight on the Far South Side on July Fourth, Cook County prosecutors said Thursday at a bond hearing for the alleged gunman.

Sean Liggett | Cook County Sheriff’s Dept.

Sean Liggett, 26, walked up to a car that was pulling into a space near Gordon, and began arguing with the three men inside before walking back to his grandmother’s apartment.

As those men parked their car, Liggett walked out of the apartment, walked up to the car, reached through the open rear passenger window and slapped a man sitting in a back seat, stating, “Bitch, I’ll kill you,” Carlson said.
Read more

By JEFF MAYES
Homicide Watch Chicago

Sun-Times file photo by Ashlee Rezin

A 16-year-old boy was shot to death Saturday in the East Garfield Park neighborhood whle walking home from visiting his infant son.

Theotis Luckett was shot in the back about 3:45 a.m. in the 3600 block of West Ohio, according to Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office. He was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead an hour-and-a-half later.

He lived in the Pulaski Park neighborhood on the Northwest Side, authorities said. Family members said he was returning home after visiting his newborn son when he became the third person shot in the neighborhood in about five hours.

The other teenage boy was killed by an off-duty Chicago Fire Department lieutenant, who claimed the teen tried to steal his car Monday morning in the West Side Austin neighborhood. Police are investigating the shooting as a case of self-defense.
Read more

Jermaine Jones was shot to death early Thursday in the Morgan Park neighborhood on the Far South Side.

Jones, 42, was found about 5 a.m. with multiple gunshot wounds to the torso in an empty lot in the 11100 block of South Ashland, according to Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

Jones, who lived on the same block, was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.

Area South detectives are conducting a homicide investigation.

—Chicago Sun-Times Wire

Joshua Bates was killed Monday afternoon in a drive-by shooting in the Gage Park neighborhood on the Southwest Side.

At 4:17 p.m., the 24-year-old was sitting in a vehicle in the 5700 block of South Artesian, according to Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

A dark-colored SUV pulled up and a passenger inside opened fire, police said. The SUV drove off in an unknown direction.

Bates, known as “Smoke,” was shot in the chest, and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 5:04 p.m., authorities said.

He lived in the Roseland neighborhood on the Far South Side.

—Chicago Sun-Times Wire

Arthur Sanchez was killed in a drive-by shooting Sunday night in the Heart of Chicago neighborhood on the South Side.

The 51-year-old was standing outside about 8:55 p.m. on a corner in the 2000 block of South Leavitt, according to Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

Two male suspects drove past in a Chevrolet vehicle, shouted gang slogans, then fired shots, police said.

Sanchez was struck in the chest and both arms, and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 9:32 p.m., authorities said. He lived just a couple of blocks away from where he was shot.

Area Central detectives were conducting a homicide investigation.

—Chicago Sun-Times Wire