Gunfire near elementary school in La Villita leaves driver critically injured, parents and teachers anxious.
A shocking incident of gun violence occurred in the La Villita neighborhood on Tuesday morning, leaving a 31-year-old man critically injured after being shot in the head by an unknown assailant while driving north. The shooting took place around 8:40 a.m. at the intersection of 2700 South Ridgeway Avenue, just a few blocks away from Little Village Academy Elementary School.
The victim lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a parked car as he attempted to flee the scene, and was subsequently taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition. Despite an ongoing investigation by Area Four detectives, no arrests have been made at this time.
The shooting sent shockwaves through the community, with parents and teachers expressing anxiety over the incident. Gigi Tolentino, whose 4-year-old daughter Angela attends Head Start at the elementary school, expressed concern about her child's safety. "As a mother, I'm very worried," she said outside the school around 3 p.m. "You're dropping off your kids to school and then you leave them without knowing what's going on."
The police have confirmed that there is no connection between the shooting and the elementary school. In fact, Little Village Academy was placed under quarantine earlier in the day as a precautionary measure, with all students and staff being safely escorted out of the building.
Despite the initial lockdown, the teachers and staff at the school worked to maintain order and continue the educational day. María Alarcón, a 6-year veteran teacher who teaches third grade, praised her colleagues for their calm demeanor during the crisis. "We did something nice," she said, referring to playing music to block out the sounds of the shooting.
Alarcón also commended the school's director and administration for their swift communication during the incident. The detective leading the investigation has assured that there is no evidence linking the school to the shooting, and that it was a random act of violence.
However, Alarcón expressed concern about what might have happened if the shooting had occurred earlier in the day, potentially exposing students arriving at the main building to the violence. "It's really terrifying," she said.
The investigation into the shooting continues, with Area Four detectives working to identify the suspect and bring them to justice.
A shocking incident of gun violence occurred in the La Villita neighborhood on Tuesday morning, leaving a 31-year-old man critically injured after being shot in the head by an unknown assailant while driving north. The shooting took place around 8:40 a.m. at the intersection of 2700 South Ridgeway Avenue, just a few blocks away from Little Village Academy Elementary School.
The victim lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a parked car as he attempted to flee the scene, and was subsequently taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition. Despite an ongoing investigation by Area Four detectives, no arrests have been made at this time.
The shooting sent shockwaves through the community, with parents and teachers expressing anxiety over the incident. Gigi Tolentino, whose 4-year-old daughter Angela attends Head Start at the elementary school, expressed concern about her child's safety. "As a mother, I'm very worried," she said outside the school around 3 p.m. "You're dropping off your kids to school and then you leave them without knowing what's going on."
The police have confirmed that there is no connection between the shooting and the elementary school. In fact, Little Village Academy was placed under quarantine earlier in the day as a precautionary measure, with all students and staff being safely escorted out of the building.
Despite the initial lockdown, the teachers and staff at the school worked to maintain order and continue the educational day. María Alarcón, a 6-year veteran teacher who teaches third grade, praised her colleagues for their calm demeanor during the crisis. "We did something nice," she said, referring to playing music to block out the sounds of the shooting.
Alarcón also commended the school's director and administration for their swift communication during the incident. The detective leading the investigation has assured that there is no evidence linking the school to the shooting, and that it was a random act of violence.
However, Alarcón expressed concern about what might have happened if the shooting had occurred earlier in the day, potentially exposing students arriving at the main building to the violence. "It's really terrifying," she said.
The investigation into the shooting continues, with Area Four detectives working to identify the suspect and bring them to justice.
. As a parent, I think we need to prioritize our kids' safety above everything else. The fact that there's no connection between the shooting and the elementary school is good news, but it doesn't mean we should let our guard down 
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. And I hope the police investigation is thorough and fast so they can catch the person responsible for this senseless act of violence 
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. But we also need to remember that most people are good and there's no reason to assume otherwise 
. Fingers crossed that justice will be served soon 
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like what's next? a kid gets shot at school and we're just supposed to keep on keeping on? I'm all for safety protocols and lockdowns, but shouldn't we be doing more to prevent these situations from happening in the first place? 
Another school shooting, just what we need... I mean, can't these people be safe anywhere? It's like they say, 'you can't make this stuff up'. I'm not surprised that parents are worried about their kids' safety now. I mean, who wouldn't want to protect them from getting hurt? 
The fact that the shooting wasn't even connected to the school doesn't make it any better... just another random act of violence. And what's with the lockdown, anyway? Like, isn't that just going to traumatize these kids even more? 
. I can only imagine how terrifying it must've been for those teachers and staff who were trying to keep everyone safe during the lockdown. And poor Gigi Tolentino, worrying about her kid's safety every time she drops them off at school? 
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. And kudos to the detective leading the investigation for being transparent about what they've found so far 
. I hope they catch the guy who did this soon and bring him to justice 
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. I feel for the parents and teachers, they must be going through hell right now. How can you even plan a day with kids when there's a shooting nearby? 
. We need better safety measures in place, ASAP! 
ugh this is just getting crazy... gun violence everywhere, can't even drive without being shot, what's next? a car accident on the way to drop off kids at school? 
and schools are still supposed to be safe places 
. Can't even feel safe driving around with guns just lying around. And that 4-year-old girl Angela, her mom's anxiety must be killing her right now 
. What if the school had been open when it happened? I'm so glad they evacuated everyone for precautionary measures, but this is still so scary. 
I'm still trying to process what happened in La Villita yesterday. As a parent myself, it's always a nightmare thinking about your kid walking around without you for 8 hours a day. The thought of that little girl, Angela, going to school just a few blocks away from where her dad got shot... it's terrifying. 
. The fact that the teacher is worried about her students hearing the sounds of gunfire on their first day back to class is just heartbreaking 
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... I mean, I'm sure it'll be trending on social media by now. Can't we just have a moment of silence or something instead of all the drama and speculation? It's like we're more concerned with being entertained than actually helping each other out 
... this feels like another example of how messed up our society is 
. Anyway, just needed to vent about this for a bit 
the system's gotta step up & protect our kids 
. That's some amazing teamwork right there! 
. hope the detective catches the guy ASAP tho 
and what's with all these lockdowns? it's like we're living in a war zone or something. can't we just have a normal day without some psycho shooting up the place? 
The fact that there was a kid just a block away at the elementary school makes it even more terrifying for parents like me who are already on edge waiting for our little ones to come home from school 
. We need to keep talking about gun safety and how we can prevent these types of incidents from happening in our communities 
.