• Hadiya Pendleton mother featured in new gun control ad

    The mother of Hadiya Pendleton, the Chicago teenager who performed at President Obama's inauguration in January and was gunned down weeks later, is the face of a new ad from Guns Against Illegal Guns.

    By Andrew Rafferty, Staff Writer, NBC News

    Cleopatra Cowley, mother of the Chicago teen shot and killed just a week after performing at President Barack Obama’s inauguration, is featured in a new public service announcement calling on Congress to reform the nation’s gun laws.


    In the ad, paid for by Mayors Against Illegal Guns, Cowley advocates for universal background checks on all gun sales.  "Tell Congress to support commonsense reforms so no more innocent children are killed. And no parent has to go through this heartbreak."

    Cowley’s daughter, Hadiya, has become the one of the most recognizable faces in President Barack Obama’s efforts to curb the country’s gun laws. First Lady Michelle Obama attended the 16-year-old’s funeral earlier this month.

    Cowley herself has also become a leading figure in the fight to pass stricter gun control laws. She and her husband sat next to the first lady during last week’s State of the Union address, where the president told her story as part of his attempt to call on Congress to act.

    “Just three weeks ago, she was here, in Washington, with her classmates, performing for her country at my inauguration. And a week later, she was shot and killed in a Chicago park after school, just a mile away from my house," Obama said of Hadiya.

    The president again told Hadiya’s story during a visit to Chicago later in the week.

    The 30-second ad begins with scenes from the president’s inauguration with Cowley narrating that it was “the happiest day” of her daughter’s life. The ad then quickly flashes to a picture of her daughter’s casket.

    A day before the State of the Union, Chicago police announced two suspects were charged with murder for Hadiya’s death. Hadiya was with her friends at a park near her school, and police believe the suspects mistakenly they were a rival gand.

    Speaking to NBC News after the suspects had been arrested, Cowley said, “My baby deserves a revolution and I pray that what happened her to her will have an impact.”

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  • Two charged with murder in Hadiya Pendleton shooting

    Chicago Police Department

    Kenneth Williams (left) and Michael Ward (right) were charged Monday in the shooting death of Hadiya Pendleton

    By Tracy Connor and Andrew Rafferty, NBC News

    Two suspects have been charged in last month’s shooting death of a 15-year-old Chicago girl who performed at President Barack Obama’s second inauguration, police announced Monday night.

    Michael Ward, 18, and Kenneth Williams, 20, each face one count of first-degree murder for the death of Hadiya Pendleton, who was shot two weeks ago in a park near her school, just days after returning from Washington, D.C., officials said. The two also face attempted first degree murder and aggravated battery with a firearm for the attack that left two other teens wounded.

    Ward was the shooter and confessed to police that Hadiya was not the intended target, police said. The shooting was allegedly meant to be a retaliation for Williams, who was shot last year.

    Reached by phone Monday evening, Hadiya’s mother, Cleopatra Cowley, said she was “ecstatic” about the arrests and urged for the young  men to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.


    “Look at what they've done to me and my family. We put so much work into raising my daughter. We had hopes. My son no longer has a big sister. They deserve to feel something that is remotely comparable,” Cowley told NBC News. “But my daughter is dead and even if they are rotting in jail, they will still be alive.”  

    Chicago police superintendent Garry McCarthy called Hadiya’s family “rocks in supporting us in this investigation.” During the press conference he said he hopes the high-profile murder will lead to meaningful change in the city’s gun law.

    He also stressed that it wasn't tips from the community that led to the arrests, but rather relentless detective work.

    “This was one of the most methodical, practical investigations that I can remember,” said McCarthy.

    Since her death, Hadiya has become one of the faces of the Obama administration’s efforts to reform the nation’s gun laws. First Lady Michelle Obama attended the teenager’s funeral Saturday, and Cowley has been invited to attended Tuesday’s State of the Union.

    “My baby deserves a revolution and I pray that what happened her to her will have an impact,” she said.

    Chicago police announce the arrest, and charges, against two men in the shooting death of Hadiya Pendleton. Police also confirm that the shooter mistook the teens for gang members.

     

     

  • Two questioned in Hadiya shooting

    By Alexandria Fisher, NBCChicago.com

    Police arrested two suspects Sunday morning who are being questioned in the death of slain teen Hadiya Pendleton, officials confirmed with NBC.

    The suspects were pulled over early this morning around 67th Street and South Chicago Avenue after detectives canvassed the area around Harsh Park, Chicago police said.

    Sources close to the investigation said no charges have been filed and the investigation is ongoing.

    The new information comes one day after First Lady Michelle Obama attended the funeral for the 15-year-old, whose death has put Chicago gun violence in the spotlight.

    It also follows the announcement of President Obama's plans to address gun violence in the city. 

    Mayor Rahm Emanuel called the teens mother Cleopatra Pendleton this morning to tell her the news, sources told NBC Chicago.

    Reward leading to her killer last stood at $40,000.