Sneed: Rev. Pfleger’s tearful nights over child killings

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The Tyshawn case . . . 

   It never stops . . .

   The murderer of Tyshawn Lee is still at large.

   The monster who killed a 9-year-old child who weighed only 83 pounds and was four inches shy of five-feet-tall is still out there.

  How does someone handle the fact that they shot a boy who may have held up his right hand to deflect a bullet that entered the right side of his head, lacerating his scalp and the membrane enveloping his brain and spinal cord — and partially amputated his right thumb?

   If Tyshawn had seen his killer and paused to make sense of what was about to happen to him before his execution, it would not have been for very long. The bullet lacerated his optic nerve.

   Shot at 4:15 p.m, Tyshawn was pronounced dead at 4:39 p.m on Nov. 2.

The Rev. Michael Pfleger, the activist priest who assisted at Tyshawn’s funeral, is dealing as best he can.

“Since I stood out on Damen Avenue the night Tyshawn was executed, my heart has been broken . . . and I have not slept well, I go between tears and screaming, because I am full of pain and anger. . . . I wake up at three and four in morning . . . break down crying. . . . I keep waking up and seeing the faces of these children and remember all the other children I’ve seen in caskets.

“It’s just evil and the babies in caskets are getting smaller and smaller.

   ”I’m tired of seeing our babies, our future, in caskets. Last Saturday I went to the visitation of Kaylyn Pryor, the 20-year-old model who was fatally shot as she visited her grandparents’ home on the South Side.

     ”On Tuesday, I buried J’Quantae Riles, the 14-year-old who had just returned to Chicago from Virginia where he had moved with his mother, who wanted to get him away from all the violence. They were here only nine days when he was killed coming home from a barbershop.

“My faith is all that’s carrying me right now. . . . THIS HAS TO STOP!”

OPINION

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The police blotter . . .

Critics of Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy’s strategy for handling gun violence in Chicago have their fingers crossed.

  • Translation: They are hoping a 2014 dashboard video of a white CPD officer fatally shooting black teenager Laquan McDonald 16 times, which was ordered released by a Cook County judge Thursday — is a career ender.
  • Upshot: The judge’s decision ordering the video’s release by Nov. 25 stunned the city’s legal eagles, which wanted release of the video delayed pending an appellate court ruling and a federal probe of the incident.

 Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who left for China on Thursday night, also argued for delaying the video’s release.

  • The buckshot: “If the video shows the cop repeatedly firing into Laquan McDonald’s body, while five other officers responding to the incident showing restraint, it might force Mayor Emanuel to change his mind about keeping Superintendent McCarthy,” said a top city source.

“Shockingly, the police officer who shot McDonald is still working at the CPD.”

A Madigan memo . . . 

   So what does powerful House Speaker Mike Madigan think of Gov. Bruce Rauner’s decision to block new Syrian refugees from Illinois?

    “The speaker is out of town at the funeral of his father-in-law,” said Madigan spokesman Steve Brown. “But I think it is safe to say most people understand the governor has no power or authority over who crosses the border — especially if  people keep leaving Illinois!”

Sneedlings . . .

The legendary Arny Granat (President of JAM Productions for the past 30 years) and Irene Michaels (local model and actress) are getting married this Sunday at Oak Park Country Club. Over 500 people invited. Lots of celebs. Congrats. Today’s birthdays: Joe Biden, 73; Carlos Boozer, 34 and Beth Heller, ageless and priceless.

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