by Jake Dima
Dozens were shot and multiple people died over Labor Day weekend in Chicago as violence continues in the city, according to police.
A total of 51 people were hit by gunfire and 10 people died, Chicago police told ABC 7. An 8-year-old girl was shot fatally Monday in an SUV while waiting at a stoplight, authorities told the local outlet.
“I stand here before you saddened and angered that another child has lost her life to senseless gun violence in the city of Chicago,” Chicago Police Chief of Operations Brian McDermott said in a Monday press conference. “At this time, I’d like to offer my sincere condolences on behalf of the Chicago Police Department to the family of the victim.”
“Our victims’ vehicle was parked facing northbound on Union Avenue with the offender’s vehicle directly behind it,” McDermott continued. “When the light turned green, the offender’s vehicle immediately opened fire on the victims’ vehicle.”
Earlier, Chicago Police Chief of Operations Brian McDermott addressed the media in relation to the senseless gun violence that lead to the murder of an 8 year old girl at 47th & Union.
Click the link to watch: https://t.co/VYkHB6peVS#CPDMediaCar pic.twitter.com/EqArYJunGl
— Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) September 8, 2020
The 8-year-old, who has yet to be named, and two other adults in the car sustained gunshot wounds, according to ABC 7. The vehicle plowed into a tree after being riddled by bullets, the local outlet reported.
A Chicago officer shot a knife-wielding man in a public park and a 16-year-old boy was wounded and taken to a children’s hospital in two separate incidents over the long weekend, according to ABC 7.
A 16-year-old girl was also wounded in a shooting, the local outlet reported.
The Department of Justice on July 22 announced the expansion of Operation Legend to Chicago due to sharp rises in violence in the city, according to a press release. The aim of the program is to combat and investigate violent crimes through the deployment of federal assets from the FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the release read.
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Jake Dima is a reporter for the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Photo “Chicago Police Press Event” by Chicago Police.