Chicago police are investigating after the primary particular person was reported shot within the metropolis about 90 minutes into the brand new 12 months, an unusually lengthy hole for a “first sufferer” by native requirements. At the least 4 different individuals have been shot since midnight, however time — and investigation — will in the end decide which case will turn out to be the primary “official” prison taking pictures of 2026.
The main candidate for that doubtful distinction is a 43-year-old man who was wounded after ringing within the new 12 months at a South Loop nightclub. In accordance with police, the person took himself to Jackson Park Hospital and informed officers he had been standing within the 2100 block of South Michigan Avenue round 1:30 a.m. when he heard gunfire and realized he had been shot within the decrease proper leg. He was listed in truthful situation.
One other early contender surfaced shortly after 2 a.m. when Chicago police had been flagged down within the 800 block of South Michigan Avenue by a witness who reported {that a} man had shot himself inside a close-by residence constructing. The constructing ceaselessly rents models for short-term and in a single day stays, in accordance with on-line listings.
Police mentioned a 37-year-old man was transported to Northwestern Hospital with a gunshot wound to the higher proper thigh and was listed in truthful situation. Unintentional, self-inflicted gunshot wounds, typically involving arms, decrease legs, or thighs, aren’t counted as prison acts in Chicago’s annual taking pictures totals.
A 3rd taking pictures was reported at about 2:43 a.m. in South Shore. Police mentioned a 33-year-old man informed them he was standing exterior when somebody shot him within the hand. He was taken to the College of Chicago Hospital and was listed in good situation.
Roughly 40 minutes later, at about 3:24 a.m., two individuals had been shot in Again of the Yards. Police mentioned a 22-year-old man and a 29-year-old girl had been exterior when “unknown offender(s)” shot them, a CPD media assertion mentioned. The person sustained two gunshot wounds, one to the again and one to the correct buttock. The girl was shot twice in the correct arm. Each victims had been listed in good situation, in accordance with CPD.
Figuring out which incident will formally stand as the primary prison taking pictures sufferer of the 12 months can take time. It’s all the time attainable that one other sufferer has not but been found or reported, which means the designation may change as further data turns into out there.
If the South Loop case holds, it might signify one of many longest delays between the stroke of midnight and the 12 months’s first taking pictures sufferer. Since 2001, solely three different years have seen the primary taking pictures happen greater than 90 minutes into the brand new 12 months: 2:10 a.m. in 2005, 2:32 a.m. in 2015, and 4 a.m. in 2014, in accordance with CPD information.
Against this, police data present that three of town’s “first” victims since 2001 had been shot precisely at midnight on New 12 months’s Day in 2007, 2024, and 2025. Greater than half of the primary shootings throughout that interval occurred throughout the first quarter-hour of the brand new 12 months, and solely six came about after 1 a.m.
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