Teen Shot at Taste of Chicago
By Margaret Lyons in News on Jul 5, 2004 6:19PM
A North Carolina teenager was shot in the leg Saturday night at Taste of Chicago. The teen was not the intended target, and his injuries were not life-threatening.
Clifford Faison, 15, was with with his family, looking for a place to sit for the fireworks around 9 p.m. Two rival gangs got in some sort of scuffle, and approximately six shots were fired in the dispute. Faison, a bystander, was the only person injured.
"He just got here from North Carolina," said [Robin] Vaughn [the victimÂ’s cousin and a Chicago resident]. "He's not used to things in Chicago. He lives in a rural area. He was walking down the street just a little way from me." When the shots were fired, she said, "everyone got down on the ground. He didn't respond fast enough."
Faison had plans to spend the summer in Chicago, but will be heading home in a few days instead. His family says that they will continue to visit the Windy City.
Dominic Moore, 19 of South Holland, was arrested in connection with the shooting. He faces felony battery, weapon, and drug charges—Moore was arrested shortly after the incident with 35 grams of marijuana and 1 gram of cocaine on his person. He also had a .45 caliber automatic handgun, which was reported stolen from Decatur Police Department. Well done, Mr. Moore.
Police estimate that 1 million people were at Grant Park at the time of the shooting, so, while any violence can be scary and awful, Taste is still a safe environment. Over 3.6 million people visited the fest, and those fatties ate "274,000 slices of pizza, 212,000 slices of cheesecake, 145,000 scoops of ice cream, 121,000 ears of corn and 80,000 turkey legs."