Woman shot in the head while driving in Dolton

A woman was shot in the head while driving with four kids in her car Wednesday night in south suburban Dolton.

A gunman on foot shot the woman in the head about 7 p.m. as she drove on Sibley Boulevard near Chicago Road, according to Andrew Holmes, a Dolton trustee and anti-violence activist.

The woman crashed her minivan into a tree. She was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition, Holmes said.

None of the kids, ranging in age from infant to 8 years old, was hurt, he said.

Police are trying to determine if the shooter was aiming at the woman — who’d just picked up the children from a day care center in Harvey — or if the car in front of her was the target, Holmes said. About 12 shots were fired, he said.

Shortly after the shooting, witnesses reported seeing a man with a gun run into a nearby house at 149th and Oak streets. A SWAT team entered the house later Wednesday but didn’t find anyone inside.

Dolton police did not answer calls seeking comment.