Terrifying moments for family as suspect is shot while trying to carjack them on Eisenhower during police chase

The man ran up to the car in rush-hour traffic on the Eisenhower and pointed a gun. His message was clear: Get out.

The family from out of state, two kids in the backseat, had suddenly become ensnared in a police pursuit of a gunman wanted in the shooting death of a 7-year-old girl, police sources said.

The gunman had just crashed his vehicle and then scurried across the highway Thursday evening, police close behind.

When the driver refused to open his door, the gunman shot through the driver’s side window, sources said. The adults jumped out of the car, then tried to get the kids out of the back seat as the gunman slid behind the wheel.

A Chicago police officer caught up to the gunman and stood next to the driver’s side window, ordering the man to raise his hands and surrender, sources said.

The officer could see a gun in the man’s lap as he sat in the driver’s seat. When he reached for the gun, the officer opened fire, police sources said.

The gunman was struck several times and arrested. He was taken to a hospital for treatment and was expected to survive, police said. The family was not injured,

Police recovered two guns from the scene, police sources said. Charges were pending Friday evening.

Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times

The shooting happened on the inbound lanes of the Eisenhower near Mannheim Road shortly after 4 p.m., creating a traffic nightmare for thousands of motorists as well as the terrifying ordeal for the family.

Chicago police officers had been performing surveillance on the man in a western suburb, authorities said. They attempted to stop his vehicle on the expressway before he crashed just off the shoulder and tried to carjack the family’s vehicle.

The new details came a day after Chicago Police Supt. David Brown said the man had been wanted in the murder of Jaslyn Adams, who was shot six times Sunday afternoon inside a car with her father at a McDonald’s drive-thru in Homan Square.

Jaslyn’s father, Jontae Adams, was treated for a gunshot wound to his torso and was released from the hospital.

Police said the shooting that killed Jaslyn was gang-related and was believed to be tied to another shooting less than three hours later that wounded two people at a Popeyes in Humboldt Park.