PEORIA (25News Now) Sunday night, Peoria police responded to the apartment complex near Martin Luther King Jr. Park for a two-round ShotSpotter alert.
Officers found the boy inside his home in the 1200 block of Southwest Phoenix Drive with a bullet wound to the chest. Police began life-saving measures until the boy was taken to an area hospital.
Despite the bullet wound, police said the boy is expected to live.
According to police, leading up to the shooting, two suspects who were wearing dark clothes were caught trying to break into a car. When confronted, a suspect fired a gun before running away.
That bullet hit the child boy inside his home.
Peoria Police Department’s transparency dashboard shows seven people have been shot at the River West Apartments over the past 10 years. Three of those gunshot victims are kids.
One neighbor said although incidents like this happen often, they still feel safe in this neighborhood.
Speak Out Illinois advocates for low-income people. The organization’s CEO Jake Partee said he’s angry that an innocent bystander was harmed because the suspects chose to break into someone else’s property.
Partee wrote in a statement, “The car break-in could have been prevented in general by the individuals. Seeking help through programs, resources, or services in which many are available in several areas, such as food, income, and rental assistance, would have been a better alternative.”
Speak Out has a peer-to-peer support line at 877-826-1241 to help people needing that assistance.
