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Boy, 14, and Woman, 19, Killed Within Blocks, Hours of Each Other in Austin

By DNAinfo Staff on July 3, 2013 6:56am  | Updated on July 3, 2013 8:28am

 A 14-year-old boy and a 19-year-old woman were killed overnight in the same neighborhood.
Teens Killed In Austin
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CHICAGO — Two people were killed by gunfire within blocks and hours of each other in the Austin overnight, police said.

The first shooting occurred about 9:40 p.m. Tuesday, when two people on foot fired into a group, said Officer Ron Gaines, a police spokesman.

A 19-year-old woman standing with the group in the 1300 block of North Lamon Avenue was shot in her head, authorities said. She was taken to Stroger Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 10:14 p.m., according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office.

The morgue wasn't releasing her name early Wednesday, but family identified her as Ashley Hardmon.

"I heard shots and I thought it was firecrackers," said Essie Taylor, 70, who lives around the corner from the site of the shooting and had known Hardmon for years. "She was a sweet girl. She was a sweet child."

Nearly three hours after the first shooting, a boy riding on his bike was shot multiple times, including in his neck, in the 5000 block of West North Avenue at 12:45 a.m. Wednesday, Gaines said.

Police identified the victim only "John Doe," and he was pronounced dead at the morgue at 3:10 a.m. But family on the scene later Wednesday said he was Damani Henard, 14, of Oak Park.

In other shootings:

• In North Lawndale, a 21-year-old man was shot in his hip at 10:30 p.m. Tuesday in the 1200 block of South Albany Avenue, Gaines said. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition.

• In Greater Grand Crossing, a 19-year-old man was shot at 6:23 p.m. in the 7700 block of South Champlain Avenue.