Andre Taylor | Homicide Watch Chicago

Pastor and family friend of Andre Taylor: Chicago in 'state of emergency' as youth keep dying violently

Brittany Reyes — Mon, 11 Apr 2016 08:00:23 -0500

Andre Taylor, a 16-year-old scholar athlete at Julian High School, dreamed of using his athletic ability as a gateway to a better life. But on March 13, he was gunned down on a neighbor's lawn, just steps from his home. | Photo Provided

By BRITTANY REYES
Homicide Watch Chicago

Returning home after walking his girlfriend to the bus stop, 16-year-old Andre Taylor was shot in the back of the head and died on a neighbor’s lawn in the Rosemoor neighborhood on March 13.

The Rev. Ira Acree of Greater St. John Bible Church believes the murder is linked to people involved in the “illegal drug economy.”

Acree’s relationship to the family spans 25 years; Taylor’s great-grandmother served on the search committee that recruited Acree as pastor more than two decades ago.

Reverend Ira Acree has pastored the Greater St. John Bible Church for 25 years. He is widely know for being a social justice activist in the community and is a tireless advocate for empowerment and education. | Photo from Facebook

Though Acree hadn’t seen Andre Taylor in “quite a while,” he described him as an intelligent and comical young man who had a great future ahead of him.

The long-time friend of the family confirms the boy wasn’t affiliated with a gang, saying he was “too busy” to engage in that lifestyle. He was an honor student at Julian High School, and played multiple sports, including football, basketball and swimming.

No arrests have been made in connection with the murder, but Acree is certain the violence was initiated, in part, by rising drug activity in the community.

“I was completely devastated to know we lost another youth because there is no reasonable excuse for the senseless killings that are taking place in Chicago right now,” Acree said.

“I know it’s prompted by poverty and the desperation of a people, and every time these innocent kids are killed, drugs have something to do with it.”

During a prayer vigil March 18, the family announced a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Taylor’s killer.

This flyer was handed out during the vigil on March 18 and posted to social media to motivate the public to speak up and help the family find the person responsible for Taylor's murder. | Photo Provided

Acree said the service was surreal, as prayer vigils typically are, but the chilling memory of great-grandmother Betty Johnson “moaning and groaning in pain” was something he wasn’t prepared for.

In 2008, Taylor’s mother was killed in a car accident and Johnson became the primary caretaker for the boy and his younger brother. The 80-year-old has lived her whole life in the city’s Far South Side, where she raised two children of her own and several grandchildren.

"If I wasn't so old, I'd take the other grandkids that are living with me and go so far up in the country, it would take three hours to get to me,” Johnson said. “It's just so bad that this is the way we have to live."

At the time of the vigil, someone hugged Johnson and told her they understood what she was going through, according to Acree. But the grieving woman shook her head and said, “No you don’t understand ... You don’t know how other people feel until they’ve killed someone in your family.”

Reverend Ira Acree, members of Greater St. John Bible Church, activist Andrew Holmes, and Taylor's family gathered to mourn the 16-year-old's death and publicly urge the killer to come forward. | Photo Provided

Acree recounted the somber moment and explained how he used the long drive home to sort through his racing thoughts.

“I don’t know how she feels but I know how I feel,” Acree said. “I’m so tired of the genocide and I’m so angry at others for taking the innocent lives of the bright stars of our community.”

Taylor’s funeral took place in Salem, Indiana, and the place was “jam packed,” according to Acree. Family and friends came to show their love, and a poet delivered a powerful message rebuking and condemning murders targeting young victims.

“It’s gotten much worse out here,” Johnson said. “But you never heard anything like what’s going on today. I feel sorry for the all of these young kids coming up today.”

As a Chicago native, Acree described how gangs have always plagued the city, but “when you kill one of our kids, a line has been crossed.”

Acree is pleading with the public, especially government officials, to work toward increasing resources in the community, believing this will lessen the appeal of gang life and drug involvement.

“It needs to be declared that Chicago is in a state of emergency and we need all hands on deck if we’re going to end this course of violence,” Acree said.

“We need to invest in the creation of jobs and improve the city's infrastructure, and that starts with improving the education system, building up fragmented families and getting guns off the street.”

WEEK IN REVIEW: At least 10 people were fatally shot, and one stabbed to death during another bloody week

Jeff Mayes — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 16:00:51 -0500

By JEFF MAYES
Chicago Sun-Times Wire

At least 11 people were fatally shot in Chicago last week, and another man was stabbed to death as the city's homicide total climbed to over 125 just 10 weeks into the year.

Sixteen-year-old Percy Julian High student Andre Taylor was shot to death Sunday night in the Rosemoor neighborhood on the Far South Side.

Officers responding to a call of shots fired about 7:50 p.m. in the 10000 block of South Indiana found the boy lying in the front yard of a home, according to Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.

Taylor, who lived on the same block, had suffered a gunshot wound to the head and was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.

A 22-year-old man was fatally shot early Saturday in the Avondale neighborhood on the Northwest Side. Ricardo Montes was on a sidewalk in the 3200 block of West Addison about 3:30 a.m. when someone opened fire from a passing SUV, police and the medical examiner’s office said.

Montes, who lived in the 3700 block of North Albany, was shot in the back and was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, where he later died.

A 24-year-old man was fatally shot Friday night in West Garfield Park. William Smith was standing outside in the 3800 block of West Flournoy shortly after 8 p.m. when someone walked up and shot him in the head, according to police and the medical examiner’s office.

Smith was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead less than two hours later, authorities said. He lived in the 900 block of North Springfield.

A southwest suburban man was shot to death Friday evening in the West Side Austin neighborhood. Terall Adams, 20, was shot several times while sitting in a vehicle at 5:45 p.m. in the 800 block of North Latrobe Avenue, according to police and the medical examiner's office.

Adams was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:15 p.m., according to the medical examiner's office. He lived in the 13900 block of Trillium Lane in Plainfield. An autopsy found he died of multiple gunshot wounds.

Orlando Porter was shot to death Friday morning in the West Englewood neighborhood. the 26-year-old was sitting in a parked car in the 7300 block of South Paulina Street about 9:20 a.m. when a car drove by and a passenger inside fired shots, according to police and the medical examiner's office.

Porter, of the 7200 block of South Wood, suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the torso and was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was pronounced dead. His death was ruled a homicide.

Paul Woods was shot to death Thursday afternoon in the South Shore neighborhood. Police said the 27-year-old was standing with a group on the corner 78th and Yates at 4:53 p.m. when someone opened fire.

Woods was shot once in the back and was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to police and the medical examiner’s office. He lived in the 8400 block of South Essex.

A 37-year-old man found shot to death in the West Garfield Park neighborhood Thursday morning was identified as West Side resident Askie Wajd.

He was found just before 5 a.m. unresponsive on the ground in the 4600 block of West Monroe, according to police and the medical examiner’s office.

Wajd was dead at the scene with a gunshot wound to the side of the head, authorities said. He lived about two blocks away in the 4500 block of West Jackson.

A man was stabbed to death in a domestic dispute Wednesday night in the South Loop. Ronald Thomas, 27, was stabbed in the chest during an argument with his girlfriend at 8:40 p.m. in his apartment in the 2100 block of South Michigan Avenue, according to police and the medical examiner’s office. He was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he died.

Thomas' girlfriend, 29-year-old Caress T. Shumaker, was charged with his murder, and is being held in the Cook County Jail on a $500,000 bond.

A 19-year-old man was shot to death Wednesday evening in the Wicker Park neighborhood. Cesar Perez was standing on the sidewalk in the 1200 block of North Milwaukee at 6:05 p.m. when someone walked up and fired shots, according to police and the medical examiner’s office.

He was shot in the head and abdomen, and was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:37 p.m. Perez lived in the 1400 block of West Division, a few blocks from where the shooting happened.

A young mother was shot to death early Wednesday while riding in a car that later crashed on the Near West Side.
Daysha Wright, 21, was a passenger in a vehicle in the 2100 block of West Maypole about 12:10 a.m. when someone fired shots and she was struck in the back, according to police and the medical examiner's office.

She was taken to Stroger Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 1:44 a.m. Wright, who lived in the 5100 block of South Paulina, was not the intended target of the shooting, according to family members.

Gerardo Rodriguez, 31, was shot to death Tuesday in the Chicago Lawn neighborhood. He was walking northbound with a friend in the 6300 block of South Troy Street at 7:52 p.m. when shots rang out and he collapsed, according to police and the medical examiner's office.

He was shot in the neck, and was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he died an hour later. Rodriguez lived in the 6200 block of South Francisco, a few blocks away from the shooting.

Maurice K. Cavin was shot to death Monday morning in the Woodlawn neighborhood. The 23-year-old was found with a gunshot wound at 11:04 a.m. in the 6500 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue, according to police and the medical examiner's office. Cavin was pronounced dead at the scene.

16-year-old Andre Taylor fatally shot in front yard in Rosemoor

Jeff Mayes — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 09:18:00 -0500

Sixteen-year-old Percy Julian High School student Andre Taylor was shot to death Sunday night in the Rosemoor neighborhood on the Far South Side.

Taylor, who lived on the same block as the shooting, had suffered a gunshot wound to the head and was pronounced dead at the scene less than an hour later, authorities said.

As of Monday morning, no one was in custody in connection with the homicide.

--Chicago Sun-Times Wire