Sandy MaloneChicago, IL – A 21-month-old baby was shot in the head during a road rage incident on Lake Shore Drive on Tuesday and police have arrested on of the gunmen.
The incident occurred at about 11 a.m. on April 6 as the toddler Kayden Swann and his grandmother were riding in a vehicle with her boyfriend, 43-year-old Jushawn Brown, WGN reported.
One vehicle refused to allow another vehicle to merge near Grant Park and Soldier Field on the city’s South Side, and then shots were fired between the two vehicles.
The gun battle went on for a couple of blocks until the vehicle the baby and his grandmother were in crashed into the back of a stopped Lexus SUV, WGN reported.
The driver of the Lexus said that the grandmother jumped out of Brown’s vehicle screaming that her baby had been shot.
A good Samaritan in a Tesla drove Kayden and his grandmother to Northwest Memorial Hospital, according to police.
Kayden was transferred to Lurie Children’s Hospital and underwent surgery, WGN reported.
“The bullet went in and came out,” Kayden’s great-grandfather Clifton Marvel told reporters outside the hospital. “He’s been in surgery. It looks to be like he’s going to be OK.”
Dr. Marcelo Malakooti said Kayden remained in “very critical condition” but has not worsened, WGN reported.
“It provides us with a cautious hope,” Dr. Malakooti said.
The toddler has been placed in a medical coma to protect his brain as well as placed on a ventilator, according to WGN.
1-year-old Kayden Swann is fighting for his life after he was shot in a road rage incident on LSD, according to Chicago Police. The latest on the investigation on @nbcchicago this morning. pic.twitter.com/nNePJ7rcJH
— Lisa Chavarria NBC5 (@LisaChavarria) April 7, 2021
Chicago Police Commander Jake Alderden said the shooting occurred “during a road rage incident.”
One witness said Brown was returning fire from the other vehicle, WGN reported.
Police recovered shell casings strewn along a two-block stretch of roadway, the Associated Press reported.
Brown was arrested on Wednesday and charged with possession and unlawful use of a weapon, WGN reported.
Police charge 43 y/o Jushawn Brown with felony gun charges in road rage shooting on Lake Shore Drive Tuesday morning. They say he was in a car with little Kayden Swann when he shot at another driver who fired back. Kayden was shot in the head and is still critical. pic.twitter.com/pCUBcCoxUj
— Jessica D'Onofrio (@donofrioABC7) April 8, 2021
The gunman in the other vehicle has not yet been apprehended.
Holly Matkin
