CHICAGO NEWS

Chicago Police Respond to Large Groups of Teenagers Downtown for 2nd Night in a Row

A large gathering took place at Millennium Park Saturday one day after a similar gathering at 31st Street Beach ended with violence

By Vi Nguyen and Matt Stefanski • Published April 15, 2023 • Updated on April 15, 2023 at 10:27 pm

Chicago police responded to massive crowds of teenagers Saturday night at Millennium Park, one day after a similar gathering took place at 31st Street Beach, prompting police to heighten their presence along the lakefront.

Video taken Saturday night showed a massive presence at the park, along with large groups of people in the area. A similar gathering took place Friday night near 31st Street Beach and eventually came to an end after a teenager was shot.

One witness, who asked not to be identified, said he saw a chaotic scene unfold. ... "It’s heartbreaking, kids fighting, chasing each other, some of them got guns," he said. "It's really heartbreaking when one of them actually gets hurt, and that’s unfortunate, happened last night."

Hundreds of teenagers, possibly even thousands, gathered at the beach after seeing flyers posted on social media for a meetup of teens. ... "It was a lot of cops here, but they were still outnumbered," the witness added. "There were so many teenagers that showed up, and they tried to keep the peace and keep them under control."

The gathering ended after a 14-year-old boy was shot in the thigh just before 9 p.m. The gunshots sent hundreds of teens running and sparked panic across the beach.