Chicago girl, 8, dies after being struck by stray bullet
CHICAGO (AP) - Police say an 8-year-old girl who died after being shot in the head by a gunman targeting someone else on Chicago’s Southwest Side has been identified.
The Cook County medical examiner’s office identified the girl Sunday as Melissa Ortega. Family members organizing an online effort to pay for funeral services say the girl and her mother moved to Chicago from Mexico last year.
A police report says Melissa was walking with her mother on Saturday afternoon when someone fired at a 26-year-old man, who police believe was the intended target.
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The girl was shot in the head and was pronounced dead at a hospital.
The man police believe was the intended target was shot in the back and was hospitalized in critical condition.
The shooting happened amid a spike in homicides in Chicago.
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