Fans are surprised to hear that two women were shot in the stadium of the White Sox game Friday night. And in even more shocking news the game continued, with only the after-show concert canceled due to security investigations.
During the 4th inning of the game between the White Sox and the Oakland Athletics, one woman received a gunshot in the leg and another woman suffered a graze from close proximity in her abdomen. Only one of the attendees received medical treatment.
Identified as a 42-year-old woman, she arrived at the University of Chicago for treatment for the bullet wound. The second victim, a 26-year-old who refused treatment for the graze.
During the game, most people did not know anything happened until after. Later a video came out showing the moment the gunshot supposedly happened. As most people stood up on the bleachers cheering, some appeared to look down in confusion.
Tom Miller, an attendant who was in the same area, left field, when it happened expressed his confusion at how quickly it happened. According to him, no one heard a gunshot but he could recall:
It happened just two rows in front me, and there was no one in front of us. All of a sudden this lady just starts bleeding from the leg. There were at least two of ’em in a row that got hit, may be a third, but I know two for sure. And, all of a sudden, security was there, and they kicked us out.
Afterward, the security escorted them off the premises without much of an explanation.
New Details on the White Sox Shooting
After the game, an announcement was released about the situation.
To clear up any ideas about why the White Sox game did not stop, a brief press conference took place the Monday after the game.
In attendance, Interim Supt. Fred Waller discusses that letting the game play out was not due to any negligence on their part.
Waller saw the situation as an “ongoing investigation.”
Due to the possibility that the shot could have come from outside the stadium, based on the limited evidence, people are at odds with the response. However, the police’s first response was to shut down the game.
Waller expressed that they contacted White Sox management about stopping the game as a precaution, however, it was deemed not an “active shooter.” Instead, the game continued with no notification of the incident to the gamegoers to avoid panic.
Meanwhile, fans questioned the integrity of the game and the possibility of a shooter entering the stadium:
How do you allow the game to continue, and not notify the fans about what had happened?
I was like, ‘How could this be happening? And, how did they get into the building?
This came along with a statement from the Alderman of the 11th ward, Nicole Lee:
As Alderman of this ward and as a fan who has attended many Sox games, I am shocked and sickened by what happened last night, and my heart goes out to the gunshot victims. I am in ongoing communication with both the Chicago Police Department and the White Sox organization, and it is my promise to our community and our city that we will get to the bottom of this.
As of now, no weapon has been found and authorities are still searching for any witnesses to the event.
Written by Brielle R. Buford
Source:
FOX 32: Chicago police explain why White Sox game continued after fans shot inside ballpark
ABC7: Chicago shooting: 2 women shot during White Sox game at Guaranteed Rate Field, police say
WGN9: Chicago Police: White Sox fan likely shot from inside the ballpark
Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Mike Boening Photography‘s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of David Wilson‘s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
