Nearly a week after a shooting at Chicago’s Guaranteed Rate Field during a White Sox and Oakland Athletics game left three women injured still has police puzzled as to how the incident occurred.
An initial theory, first reported by ESPN Chicago’s Peggy Kusinski, points to it being an accidental discharge from one of the victims hiding and carrying the firearm inside “the folds of her belly fat.”
One victim, a 42-year-old, was struck in the leg while sitting in the left field bleachers. A 26-year-old suffered a graze to the abdomen and a 31-year-old was “nicked in the back.” The 31-year-old found a bullet which was handed over to White Sox security.
According to ABC 7, Chicago Police identified the latter two women as teachers at Graham Elementary who were celebrating the end of the first week of school with coworkers.
The shooting happened during the fourth inning but did not interrupt game play after an active shooter situation was ruled out. A witness sitting near the victims told ABC 7 that everyone in the section was relocated shortly afterwards.
However, a planned post-game concert featuring Vanilla Ice and Tone Loc was canceled to allow police to investigate in the stadium without fans present.
The 42-year-old, who is believed to be the one who brought the gun inside the ballpark, released a statement through her attorney Tuesday denying possessing or discharging a weapon. “We have reviewed photographic evidence and x-rays of our client’s injuries with firearms and medical experts who confirm the gunshot wound our client sustained was not self-inflicted and was not the result of her accidentally discharging a firearm” the statement reads in part.
A police source has also told the outlet that her clothing tested negative for gunshot residue. After initially ruling out the shot coming from outside of the stadium, detectives are reconsidering the idea. The ATF is now assisting the CPD in the ongoing investigation.
