O Block: 4 wounded in Chicago shooting near notoriously violent stretch made famous by rappers

Gunfire erupted Wednesday in the 6300 block of South Calumet Avenue around the corner from ‘O Block,’ a notoriously violent stretch that includes the Parkway Gardens apartment complex.

Chicago police work the scene where four people were shot in the 6300 block of South Calumet Avenue in the Grand Crossing neighborhood on Wednesday. No arrests have been made.

Four people were wounded in a shooting Wednesday evening near “O Block,” a notoriously violent blocklong stretch on the South Side that includes the sprawling Parkway Gardens apartment complex.

Police said the shooting occurred about 6:15 p.m. in the 6300 block of South Calumet Avenue in Grand Crossing, around the corner from the 6400 block of South Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, known as “O Block.” An officer-in-distress call was broadcast over police radios after a large crowd gathered.

A 16-year-old boy, shot in his chest, was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition, officials said.

Three others arrived at the hospital in good condition. Two men, 39 and 42, had suffered leg wounds, and a 22-year-old man suffered a graze wound, police said.

Chicago police work the scene of a shooting Wednesday evening in the 6300 block of South Calumet Avenue that left a 16-year-old boy in critical condition. Three men who who were shot were in good condition, police said.

Another shooting happened in the same area last July 4. Five people were shot shortly after midnight in the 6500 block of King Drive, in the Parkway Gardens complex, a couple of blocks south of Wednesday’s shooting.

‘O Block’: the most dangerous block in Chicago, once home to Michelle Obama

“O Block,” once the home of former first lady Michelle Obama, has become a staple of Chicago drill music and has also counted rappers Chief Keef and King Von as residents. King Von, whose real name was Dayvon Bennett, named his debut album “Welcome to O’Block” and was memorialized in a mural near Parkway Gardens after he was fatally shot in Atlanta in 2020.

Rapper King Von, real name Dayvon Bennett, was associated with the Black Disciples’ O Block faction, which federal authorities say carried out rival rapper FBG Duck’s killing. — Dayvon Bennett, better known as rapper King Von

Gang members named the block for 20-year-old Odee Perry, who was gunned down just around the corner on a summer night in 2011. Police sources said he was killed by a 17-year-old female gang assassin named Gakirah Barnes, who was later killed amid a series of retaliatory shootings in 2014.

‘She called herself a hitta’ — a 17-year-old female assassin operated on the South Side

Police records show the investigation into Barnes’ death was closed after Cook County prosecutors rejected charges against Bennett, who’d been their prime suspect.

Rapper King Von’s killing puts a spotlight on Chicago gang ties to Atlanta

Contributing: Frank Main

The ‘O Block,’ in the 6400 block of South Dr. Martin Luther King Drive, was once the home of former first lady Michelle Obama and is known as the most dangerous block in Chicago.

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4 wounded in shooting near ‘O Block’ in Grand Crossing

Gunfire erupted Wednesday in the 6300 block of South Calumet Avenue around the corner from ‘O Block,’ a notoriously violent stretch that includes the Parkway Gardens apartment complex.