Mother still in 'total shock' after 10-year-old Gustavo Garcia shot to death while riding in SUV in East Side

Gustavo Garcia | family photo

A mother’s eyes are swollen shut from crying after the fatal shooting of 10-year-old Gustavo Garcia in the East Side neighborhood on the Far South Side, a community activist said.

Gustavo was in the backseat of an SUV, with his 31-year-old stepfather and an adult friend at 11:13 p.m. Friday, traveling west in the 3500 block of East 97th Street, Chicago Police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office said.

They were going to pick up a friend when a gray Chevrolet Impala pulled up next to them and someone inside opened fire, police said.

The boy was shot in the back and was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital, where he died, authorities said. He lived in the South Chicago neighborhood.

His stepfather's friend was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn after being shot in the back, face and chest, according to police. He was in critical condition.

After the shooting, a group of 10 people, including family members, gathered inside and outside the hospital.

A man who said he was Garcia’s father let out several outbursts outside the emergency room before he went inside about 10 minutes after arriving. He fell to his knees when he learned of his son’s passing.

“My son is…” he said, before pausing. “I don’t know.”

One man in the group said the family did not want to comment further.

Police have no suspects in custody, and it was unclear whether anyone in the SUV was the intended target, according to community activist Andrew Holmes.

Holmes, speaking for the family, said the boy was approaching his birthday next month. Though he didn’t know Gustavo, he said he’s learned through the family that the boy loved playing video games, loved his classmates, and looked forward to going back.

The boy would have started the 4th grade at Arnold Mireles Academy in the fall.

“He wasn’t an outside kid,” Holmes said. “He was homebound.”

Holmes is pleading with anyone with surveillance footage that might have captured the shooting to come forward. He said Gustavo’s mother “has no idea or knowledge” of what led to the incident, and her eyes are nearly swollen shut from crying.

“She’s in shock,” Holmes said. “Total shock.”

Cardinal Blase Cupich said Gustavo’s murder with an assault weapon goes to the heart of the problems city and civic leaders need to figure out.

Standing before a City Club luncheon on Monday, the cardinal ticked them off one by one: Guns, violence, poverty, a lack of respect for life, and the “grave sin” of racism.

“It all leads to hopelessness,” Cupich said.

On violence, he said, “I will continue to work toward a daunting task — sensible gun restrictions.”

Cupich announced a new position within the archdiocese to serve as a liaison between the church and community in addressing issues related to violence. “Too often, we work in silos. There’s been a lack of coordination,” he said. The new position will help coordinate efforts to improve programming.