At least two people began shooting at a house party in Chicago’s south side in the early hours of Sunday morning, according to police, who say that 13 people were shot and being treated at area hospitals, Reuters reports.
The house party was to commemorate the birthday of a man who died in a previous shooting, police said. No one was killed, but several victims were in critical condition, according to police. Someone at the party opened fire, sending 13 people to area hospitals.
Police took two people into custody for questioning on Sunday, and one of them was charged with unlawful use of a weapon by a felon.
Chicago has struggled for years with violent crime, logging more murders annually than the combined figures from New York and Los Angeles, two much larger cities.
The injured ranged in age from 16 to 48, and 12 were in hospital on Sunday, four of the victims, including a 16-year-old male, were critically wounded after suffering gunshot wounds to the chest or lower back. Police responded at the scene at around 12:30 a.m. CT (0630 GMT), according to a police statement.
The other person in custody, a 25-year-old male, was also a victim in the shooting, police said.
“This party was given in the memorial of a subject that was slain in April,” Chicago Police Chief of Patrol Fred Waller said at press conference. “We’re still developing details as far as that goes.”
“It looked like they were just shooting randomly at people as they exited the party,” Waller said.