CHICAGO — A man died Wednesday night after a shooting that caused him to crash his car through a telephone pole and into a nearby home.
The man was removed from his vehicle before being taken to the hospital in critical condition. He was shot about 5:40 p.m. in the 11800 block of South Harvard Avenue in West Pullman, police said.
He was identified as Dane Whitfield, 31, of the 12100 block of South Stewart Avenue by the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office. He was pronounced dead at 6:55 p.m. at Advocate Christ Medical Center, according to the medical examiner's office.
Several of the man's friends arrived at the scene in disbelief as they were told of the news.
Brayard McCullough, the man's barber, first recognized his friend's vehicle by its license plate — he said he uses the numbers to play the lottery.
"I had just seen him," McCullough said. "He had just left my shop 10 minutes before all this happened.
"We go way back," he said. "I can't even believe this is happening."
The man, who moved to the neighborhood around 1988, was "cool" and "a ladies man," McCullough said while looking at the car, which had jumped a fence and broken a telephone pole at its base before becoming lodged in the stone foundation of the home.
The car also appeared to have struck a beige sedan along the way, tearing out its rear end.
Neighbors said they heard at least two shots, then heard the vehicle speed down the street moments before a loud crash as it tore into the home.
Earlier, a 34-year-old man was shot once in his eye about 4:15 p.m. in the 7100 block of South Wood Street in West Englewood, police said.
He was taken to Stroger Hospital in serious condition, police said.
About 11:30 p.m., a man was shot in the abdomen in the 3900 block of West 24th Street in Little Village, said Officer Amina Greer, a police spokeswoman.
The 22-year-old checked himself into Mount Sinai Hospital, though his condition is unknown, Greer said.
In Auburn Gresham, a 22-year-old "social club" security guard was shot in his foot about 3:20 a.m. Thursday in the 1500 block of West 79th Street, Greer said.
Leading up to that shooting, another man had tried to enter the club but was denied entry, Greer said. He went to the back of the club and fired a shot that hit the guard's foot.
The shooter fled, Greer said, and the security guard was sent to Holy Cross Hospital, where he is in "stable" condition.
