5-year-old struck in hit-and-run following apparent road-rage incident on Dan RyanMadeline Kenneyon June 10, 2021 at 1:53 am

The boy was treated for a broken leg and arm, according to his aunt, Carmelita Fleming.

An apparent road-rage incident Wednesday afternoon on the Dan Ryan Expressway — and the subsequent chase and shooting after — led to a 5-year-old boy being injured in a hit-and-run incident on the South Side.

A blue SUV and a red sedan were involved in a road-rage incident on the Dan Ryan about 4:45 p.m., and both vehicles then ended up in the 8700 block of South Michigan Avenue, according to Chicago police.

While both vehicles were headed northbound on Michigan, someone inside the SUV fired shots at the sedan, police said. The SUV struck Wisdom Parker, who was nearby, while it was fleeing the scene.

The boy was treated for a broken leg and arm, according to his aunt Carmelita Fleming.

“I’m just glad my nephew’s OK,” Fleming said.

Fleming described the chaotic scene following the incident. She didn’t hear the gunshots, but said her family did. Her neighbors rushed outside and dialed 911 after Parker was hit.

“It was horrifying,” Fleming said. “We didn’t know if someone was shot, we didn’t even know who was hurt at the time because when I come out the house, all I hear is ‘Get him! Don’t touch him!’ … So I didn’t know what to think and then I saw blood.”

Provided

Parker’s family was coming to Fleming’s West Chesterfield home for a barbecue on her back porch. Fleming said her 5-month-old nephew was also near the family’s car when Parker was struck.

“We were just hanging out at my house today … just having a good get together, you know, a good time” before that happened, Fleming said.

Though the SUV fled from the area after the crash, Fleming said the driver of the red sedan stayed and filled her in on what allegedly happened.

The motorist told Fleming that the SUV sideswiped his car on the Dan Ryan. He chased that car off the expressway and into Fleming’s neighborhood. That’s when someone from the SUV began shooting at the other driver.

“He said he wished he would have known to not follow the guy,” Fleming said. “He was ignorant. I’m like, ‘Why would you follow him, though?’ I said, ‘Sir, they’re killin’ people now. Just keep going.’ And I have young sons, and they explain, ‘Mom, things aren’t like they used to be back in your day. These young folks, they’re not thinkin’.”

Fleming said her nephew is a “joy to be around.”

“He’s just the normal 5-year-old boy, he wants to play video games, he wants to be mischievous, he wants to work his mom’s nerve,” she said. “He’s a good little boy.”

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