A week after performing at inauguration festivities in Washington, D.C., a 15-year old Chicago girl was shot dead blocks from her school on the South Side in the latest incident of gun violence in the city.
Hadiya Pendleton, a student at King College Prep School and majorette in the band, performed with her classmates at several inaugural events last week in the nation’s capital.
After school on Tuesday, however, Pendleton was shot and killed in a South Side park. At the time of the shooting, Pendleton was standing with a group of 10 to 12 friends taking cover from the heavy rain that swept over the city, according to police.
A man jumped a fence and ran towards the group and opened fire. As the teenagers scattered, two were shot — Pendleton and Lawrence Sellers. He is listed in serious condition, police said.
The shooting occurred about a mile from President Obama’s Chicago home. White House spokesman Jay Carney said, “The president and first lady’s thoughts and prayers are with the family of Hadiya Pendleton. All of our thoughts and prayers are with her family.”
