Chicago Teen Who Performed At Inauguration Gunned Down

Gun violence continues as lawmakers consider restrictive actions

Hadiya Pendleton, a 15-year-old student at Chicago’s King College Prep, danced at an event in Washington, in celebration of fellow Windy City resident Barack Obama’s presidential inauguration. Less than a week later, she was shot in the back while hanging out with friends in a park not far from Obama’s family home. The news of her death sent more shockwaves around the country, as families of gun violence victims, lawmakers and gun rights advocates on Wednesday debated measures to restrict access to certain weapons and make it harder for the wrong people to purchase firearms. Pendleton’s death was not unfamiliar for some in Chicago, where gun violence has contributed to at least 40 deaths this year and more than 500 last year. Joshua Purkiss, an officer with the Chicago Police Department, said investigators believe the shooter mistook Pendleton and her teenage friends for gang members and fired at them. Another boy was shot once in the leg, but is in good condition. A third victim had a graze wound. White House spokesman Jay Carney called the shooting “another example of the problem that we need to deal with.” (New York Times)

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