Chicago Fourth Of July Weekend Shooting: Bullet That Killed 7-Year-Old Boy Was Meant For 'Gang Member' Father

The bullet that killed a 7-year-old boy in Chicago during the July 4 Independence Day weekend was, in fact, meant for his father, media reports said Sunday, citing police officials. Amari was standing with his father Antonio Brown on a sidewalk in the 1100 block of North Harding Avenue in the Humboldt Park neighborhood, when he was shot just before midnight on Saturday.

Amari received the bullet on the right side of his chest and died at the Cook County Hospital, where he was taken by his father. A 26-year-old woman, standing next to Antonio, was also reportedly shot in the chest and taken to John H. Stroger Hospital.

By Sunday, eight people were killed and 41 injured in shootings that started in Chicago Thursday.

"You might as well turn yourself in because this 7-year-old, our family member, did nothing to you," Deirdre Holman, a family member of the boy, said, according to ABC News.

Rev. Ira Acree, said, according to ABC News: "This person was killed by someone who looks like us, who walks like us, who dresses like us, who lives among us." Pastors with the Leaders Network pledged $1,000 for information on the shootings that may lead to an arrest.

Antonio has a long rap sheet and is a gang member, Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy said Sunday, according to Chicago Sun-Times. Antonio, who was most recently arrested on gun and theft charges, was reportedly not cooperating with the police. He had pleaded guilty to a charge of possessing drugs that led to a one-year sentence.

"His father is ranking gang member with 45 previous arrests," McCarthy, said, according to ABC News, adding: "I don't know how many pages (his arrest record) is, it's probably 22 pages long. (He was) arrested for a firearms in April, on the street the very next day. If Mr. Brown is in custody, his son is alive."

The first shooting in the city took place on Thursday evening when a 20-year-old man was shot repeatedly on his upper body. The victim was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital where he was pronounced dead, NBC News Chicago reported.

Another 46-year-old man was shot from a moving car on Friday morning while a woman walking with him was injured. A 26-year-old man, who was sitting on a porch, was shot from the back and later pronounced dead at the John H. Stroger Hospital.

Another 23-year-old man was killed early Sunday in the North Side Albany Park neighborhood, NBC News Chicago reported. Two men, sitting in a car in the 1600 block of West 89th Street in Auburn Gresham were also shot by a gunman. Both the men were pronounced dead.

The holiday weekend is often marked by a rise in violence in Chicago. A total of 67 people were shot last year and 11 were reported dead.