19 People Shot In Chicago Since 5:20 P.M. Thursday

By Chuck Sudo in News on Aug 24, 2012 1:40PM

Nineteen people were injured in gun violence across Chicago Thursday night and early Friday morning—13 of them during a 30-minute stretch&mdash:in one of the most violent days the city has seen in nearly two months.

The majority of the shootings occurred between 9:15 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. Thursday night. Eight people were injured in an incident between warring factions of the Black P Stone Rangers street gang at 79th Street and Essex Avenue around 9:15 p.m. The victims ranged in age from 14 to 28. Chicago Police and SWAT teams sped from the scene to a motel at 81st Street and Stony Island Avenue, where a suspect's car and a blood trail were discovered. Police finally were able to enter the motel room where the blood trail ended and found two guns, but no suspects.

It was the second time this year the intersection of 79th and Essex saw major gun violence. Two people were killed and another five injured in an incident on Feb. 19. Thursday marked the third time in two months that shootings have injured multiple people in a short time frame. Sixteen people were injured during a six-hour stretch of gun violence on July 3. Five people were killed and another 21 injured during the Independence Day holiday.

Chicago's murder rate is up 31 percent over 2011. Gun violence is up 8 percent. Both spikes have attracted national headlines.