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A2 UP FRONT
Tuesday 5 July 2022

6 dead, 24 wounded in shooting at Chicago-area July 4 parade

By MICHAEL TARM, KATH- Cinderella were left be-
LEEN FOODY and ROGER hind. Blankets, lawn chairs,
SCHNEIDER coffees and water bottles
Associated Press were knocked over as peo-
HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. (AP) ple fled.
— A gunman on a roof- Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said
top opened fire on an In- in a statement: "There are
dependence Day parade no words for the kind of
in suburban Chicago on monster who lies in wait
Monday, killing at least and fires into a crowd of
six people, wounding 24 families with children cele-
and sending hundreds of brating a holiday with their
marchers, parents with community."
strollers and children on Gina Troiani and her son
bicycles fleeing in terror, were lined up with his day-
police said. The suspect re- care class ready to walk
mained on the loose hours onto the parade route
later as authorities scoured when she heard a loud
the area. sound that she believed
Highland Park Police Com- was fireworks — until she
mander Chris O'Neill, the heard people yell about
incident commander on a shooter. In a video that
scene, urged people to A Lake County police officer walks down Central Ave in Highland Park, Ill. on Monday, July 4, Troiani shot on her phone,
shelter in place as authori- 2022, after a shooter fired on the northern suburb's Fourth of July parade. some of the kids are visibly
ties search for the suspect. Associated Press startled at the loud noise,
He said Monday afternoon and they scramble to the
that a "very active appre- bara Harte, 73, who had again brought grief to an random here today at a side of the road as a siren
hension effort" was under- stayed away from the pa- American community on community event where wails nearby.
way. rade fearing a mass shoot- this Independence Day." people were gathered "We just start running in the
The July 4 shooting was ing, but later ventured from He said he had "surged Fed- to celebrate, and the of- opposite direction," she
just the latest to shatter her home. eral law enforcement to as- fender has not been ap- told The Associated Press.
the rituals of American life. Lake County Major Crime sist in the urgent search for prehended thus far," Cov- Her 5-year-old son was rid-
Schools, churches, grocery Task Force spokesman the shooter, who remains elli, the crime task force ing his bike decorated
stores and now commu- Christopher Covelli said at at large at this time." spokesman, said. "So, could with red and blue curled
nity parades have all be- a news conference "sever- Agents from the Bureau of this happen again? We ribbons. He and other chil-
come killing grounds in re- al of the deceased victims" Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms don't know what his inten- dren in the group held small
cent months. This time, the died at the scene and one and Explosives were con- tions are at this point, so American flags. The city
bloodshed came as the was taken to a hospital and ducting an urgent trace certainly we're not sure of said on its website that the
nation tried to find cause to died there. Police have not of the rifle, agency spokes- that." festivities were to include a
celebrate its founding and released details about the person April Langwell said. More than 100 law enforce- children's bike and pet pa-
the bonds that still hold it victims or wounded. Federal agents conduct ment officers were called rade.
together. Lake County Coroner Jen- such traces to identify to the parade scene or Troiani said she pushed her
Mayor Nancy Rotering said nifer Banek said the five when, where and to whom dispatched to find the sus- son's bike, running through
the violence "has shaken us people killed at the pa- the gun was last sold. pected shooter. the neighborhood to get
to our core," adding, "On rade were adults and she Biden signed the widest- Hours after the shooting, back to their car.
a day that we came to- doesn't have information ranging gun violence bill law enforcement officers "It was just sort of chaos,"
gether to celebrate com- on the sixth victim who was passed by Congress in de- searched an office build- she said. "There were peo-
munity and freedom, we taken to a hospital and cades, a compromise that ing near where the shoot- ple that got separated from
are instead mourning the died there. showed at once both prog- ing occurred. Nearby, their families, looking for
tragic loss of life and strug- The shooter opened fire ress on a long-intractable armed FBI agents in cam- them. Others just dropped
gling with the terror that around 10:15 a.m., when issue and the deep-seated ouflage had also escorted their wagons, grabbed
was brought upon us." the parade was about partisan divide that persists. a family with two small girls their kids and started run-
The shooting occurred at a three-quarters through, au- Police believe there was across Central Avenue. ning."
spot on the parade route thorities said. only one shooter but The children looked visibly Debbie Glickman, a High-
where many residents had Covelli said the gunman warned that he should still frightened even as their land Park resident, said she
staked out prime viewing apparently used a "high- be considered armed and mother attempted to reas- was on a parade float with
points early in the day for powered rifle" to fire from dangerous. Several nearby sure them that the agents coworkers and the group
the annual celebration. a spot atop a commercial cities canceled events in- leading and flanking them was preparing to turn onto
Dozens of fired bullets sent building where he was "very cluding parades and fire- would protect them. the main route when she
hundreds of parade-goers difficult to see." He said the works, some of them not- "Don't worry, you're safe saw people running from
— some visibly bloodied rifle was recovered at the ing that the Highland Park now," she told them. "These the area.
— fleeing. They left a trail scene. Police also found shooter was still at large. guys will protect you." "People started saying:
of abandoned items that a ladder attached to the Evanston, Deerfield, Skokie, Ominous signs of a joy- 'There's a shooter, there's a
showed everyday life sud- building. Waukegan and Glencoe ous event suddenly turned shooter, there's a shooter,'"
denly, violently disrupted: "Very random, very inten- canceled events. The Chi- to horror filled both sides Glickman told the AP. "So
A half-eaten bag of potato tional and a very sad day," cago White Sox also an- of Central Avenue where we just ran. We just ran.
chips; a box of chocolate Covelli said. nounced on Twitter that a the shooting occurred. It's like mass chaos down
cookies spilled onto the President Joe Biden on planned post-game fire- Dozens of baby strollers — there." She didn't hear any
grass; a child's Chicago Monday said he and works show is canceled some bearing American noises or see anyone who
Cubs cap. first lady Jill Biden were due to the shooting. flags, abandoned chil- appeared to be injured.
"There's no safe place," said "shocked by the senseless "You have a tragic mass dren's bikes and a helmet "I'm so freaked out," she
Highland Park resident Bar- gun violence that has yet act of violence that was bedecked with images of said. "It's just so sad."q