Man, 36. killed in fight over woman at South Loop club

A 36-year-old man man was shot to death early Saturday after an argument over a woman at a club in the South Loop, and another man was wounded by a stray bullet, according to the police and the family of the man who was killed.

They said it started with an argument around 1:20 a.m. Saturday at the Riff Music Lounge, 2239 S. Michigan Ave. Michael Ricks and another man were arguing over a woman, and the other man was booted out of the club.

He came back wiht a gun and opened fire, according to the police.

“And as a result of that, here we are having to plan for a funeral now of Michael Ricks,” said Carlos Estes, a friend speaking on behalf of Ricks’ family.

Shot in the abdomen, Ricks was pronounced dead at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

Michael Ricks

He grewn up on the South Side, in the Dearborn Homes on South State Street, where his mother, Doris Ricks, was the longtime president of a Local Advisory Council, according to Estes.

“Everybody knows Ms. Ricks,” he said.

Michael Ricks had been at a birthday party when he was invited to go to Riff, according to Estes, who said he leaves behind several young children.

A bystander at the South Loop club — a 39-year-old man who wasn’t involved in the argument — was shot in the abdomen but was able to get to Stroger Hospital on his own, according to the police.

Relatives and friends gathered Saturday at Doris Ricks’ apartment, where her brother Michael — after whom she named her son — and Estes said she was in no condition to talk.

“She’s already been very sick, but she’s very, very ill behind this,” Estes said.

Contributing: Sam Charles, Ashlee Rezin