2 teens charged in paintball attack on former Chicago police superintendent

Two teenage boys have been charged with shooting a paintball gun at former Chicago Police Superintendent Terry Hillard outside his Chatham home over the Memorial Day weekend.

The boys, 16 and 17, were arrested a week apart, according to police.

Home surveillance video, first reported by the Sun-Times, shows Hillard, 78, outside his home for 10 minutes before a red Kia pulls up, someone opens the front passenger side door of the car and fires, striking the former top cop four times in the right side of his chest and knocking him to the ground.

The 17-year-old was arrested two days after the attack in the 8400 block of South Gilbert Court in Gresham, police said. The other boy, 16. was arrested June 8 in the 700 block of East 111th Street in Pullman.

A police report did not indicate which of the teens was shooting and which one was driving, according to a police spokeswoman.

It’s still unclear if the attack was targeted or random. There were no other reports of paintball attacks in the area that day, according to a police spokeswoman.

Seemingly random paintball attacks skyrocketed in Chicago in 2020, the Sun-Times has reported. Although rarely fatal, hits from paintballs can cause serious and permanent damage to vulnerable parts of the body, like the eyeball.

A source told the Sun-Times said that if Hillard had been shot in the head instead of his body, the outcome could have been far worse.

The boys, charged as juveniles, each face a felony count of aggravated battery to a victim over 60 years old.

Hillard, who was a bodyguard for Mayor Jane Byrne, was superintendent from 1998 to 2003. In 1975, he was shot in the wrist and elbow while arresting a man for assault.

After the paintball attack, Hillard issued a statement saying: “He wants everyone to just be vigilant, be aware, and be safe.”