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The frantic 911 calls that came the night Hadiya Pendleton was gunned down in a Chicago park were released Monday, and they included a key description of the shooter.
"I just heard shots fired, 44th and Oakenwald. A male black in a blue jacket about 5-8 just went ... northbound on Oakenwald," an anonymous caller said. "In a white Nissan. He's a passenger. He had a blue jacket, he was just shooting in the alley."
Several calls to 911 the afternoon of Jan. 29 were pierced with screaming in the background. One caller described six shots fired in the area and a little girl on the ground.
That girl, a 15-year-old King College Prep High School majorette, would become a symbol for local violence and the nation's debate over gun safety.
Pendleton was shot in the back days after she performed at President Barack Obama's inauguration festivities in Washington. She was with a group of friends at Vivian Gordon Harsh Park when shots rang out.
Two weeks later, Michaeil Ward, 18, and Kenneth Williams, 20, were charged with first-degree murder in Pendleton's death. The description given in one of multiple 911 calls that night gave police their first leads.
Chicago police Supt. Garry McCarthy said Ward confessed to being the shooter, telling police Pendleton was not his intended target. McCarthy said the shooting was in retaliation for a shooting last July that left Williams injured.
"They thought the group they shot into included members of a rival gang," McCarthy said. "Instead, it was a group of upstanding and determined kids, who, like Hadiya, were repulsed by the gang lifestyle."
First Lady Michelle Obama went to Pendleton's funeral and President Obama has invoked the girl in several of his addresses, including one at a South Side Chicago school.
"Unfortunately what happened to Hadiya is not unique," Obama said, calling for "commonsense" reforms. "It's not unique to Chicago. It's not unique to this country. Too many of our children are being taken away from us."
Pendleton's parents, Cleopatra Cowley-Pendleton and Nathaniel Pendleton, attended the State of the Union address. Most recently a bill called Hadiya's Law was proposed by Sens. Dick Durbin and Mark Kirk that would crack down on so-called straw purchasing.
Related: Two charged with murder in Hadiya Pendleton shooting
Leave a Comment:
Let this poor sweet child Rest in Peace. Why does the media have to keep dragging her family and friends through this nightmare?
because NBC wants to keep ringing the weapons ban bell so they get more page hits when we all come on here to argue about it....
reality is: our politicians are just using the guns thing as a distraction from all the stuff they are doing wrong...
I'll be shocked if any gun legislation is put through this year, and an assault / large magazine ban will never happen
I have a question .... Why is it if I own the Gun it is called an Assault Weapon....... BUT ......
If a cop had the same gun it is called a TACTICAL Weapon?
navyvet98
I agree, why can't they just let this little girls family heal instead of bringing it back up. The story above is of no value to anyone. They have already made arrest & I'm sure her parents were informed when they got these two low lifes.
Hello folks, this is just another attempt to keep the assault on the second amendment on the front burner. While tragic, Hadiya's death is being taken advantage of. Like Rahm Emanuel said, "never let a crisis go to waste".
Because NBC (under the mandate of the White House) is playing on your emotions to have legal guns banned/confiscated.
"a male black"
you mean NBC didn't edit the 911 calls to make the caller sound racist?
also what kind of rap sheet does the two suspects have?
This is an example of what is wrong. It's not about the guns. It's about who is using the guns to kill other people
#2
Grow up... a description...nothing more
With a description like that, I can't believe they didn't arrest him within the hour. Black, 5' 8" with a blue jacket. How many people fit this description. They were probably profiling.
YOU are missing the point of the comment... actually SEVERAL points... but you have such tunnel vision you can't see ANY of them
I would like to know,what happened to the shooter? Is he still in jail? What are the charges? When is his trial? Did they recover the gun? If so where did it come from? What about the driver of the car. Is he known? Is he under arrest? What are his charges? You know,important things like that are what drive the story not the 911 tapes that hurt the family.
This is an example of what is wrong. It's not about the guns. It's about who is using the guns to kill other people.
It is a a shame about this girl and her family having to suffer so much. But just remember, the news wants to make sure that the white folk in this country don't hve guns. That will make it much easier for the criminals to attack. The problem is half the murders are committed by Black(ssshhh. don't say that, it is racist) Blacks don't kill, the gun does.
The problem is half the murders are committed by Black(ssshhh. don't say that, it is racist) Blacks don't kill, the gun does.
Your comment, however, IS...
That is true only insofar as Guns alone will never hurt anyone, it is ALWAYS about the HUMAN wielding the gun, unless your are just trying to race bait, then I leave that nonsense to others.
Chris4132020
But that's what sells, guns & racial divide. Big bucks for MSN & MSNBC. They are better at it than any of them.
As wonderful as this girl appears to have been, she's just one of many drive-by victims.
Just because she happened to perform at the inauguration does NOT make her any more special than all the rest.
Let it rest!
What about the sixteen year old American citizen in Yemen that the president ordered murdered?
lmao all you idiots talking about how media spins this or that about guns, what do you call the nra's fear monger campaign???? oh, you know you runs the nra right? gun companies!! lol suckers
Why don't you move to a gun free Nirvana like North Korea or China and spout your b.s? The Second Amendment guarantees your First amendments rights. Sucka!