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Woman Slain In Edgewater Had 5-Year-Old Son, Was 'Very Loved'

By Linze Rice | May 3, 2016 12:19pm | Updated on May 3, 2016 12:32pm
 Karina Soria-Bautista, 21, was killed in a shooting at a busy Edgewater intersection early Monday morning.
Karina Soria-Bautista, 21, was killed in a shooting at a busy Edgewater intersection early Monday morning.
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Facebook/Karina Soria

WEST RIDGE — Days before her 22nd birthday, Karina Soria-Bautista was out having a night of fun with friends in the hours before she was gunned down at one of the North Side's busiest intersections early Monday.

Dawn Valenti, a victim's advocate speaking on behalf of the family, said she arrived at the Bautista residence in the 6300 block of North Claremont Avenue just before police came to tell Karina's parents she'd been killed.

The family didn't find out about the high-profile shooting until about 9 a.m. Monday, and were unable to say goodbye to Soria-Bautista before she died, Valenti said.

Around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Valenti drove the family to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office to identify the body.

She is survived by her parents, son, and four brothers, Valenti said.

The family "wanted the public to know that she was very loved," Valenti said. "I mean, when I was there, the love that I felt in the room and the devastation as the family members were starting to arrive one by one and learning that she had been killed — it was a lot for them."

How she was killed has also left the family with many questions, Valenti said.

The Bautista family, along with victim advocate Dawn Valenti, leave their West Ridge home late Tuesday morning to go to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office. [DNAinfo/Linze Rice]

Police said Soria-Bautista was driving an SUV and with her boyfriend in the passenger seat, who authorities said is a documented gang member.

 

While stopped in the 5900 block of North Ridge Avenue at 12:55 a.m. Monday, a gray car pulled up and a man inside opened fire, said Officer Ana Pacheco, a Chicago Police spokeswoman.

After being shot, Soria-Bautista drove north on Ridge Avenue for about another block before finally pulling up alongside Patch Landscaping and Snow Removal, 6107 N. Ridge Ave., where the SUV was found.

Soria-Bautista was shot in her head, Pacheco said. She was rushed to St. Francis Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 1:35 a.m.

A third person had been with the two earlier, but had been dropped off on the city's South Side before Soria-Bautista and her boyfriend headed back north.

Valenti said Soria-Bautista's parents had only recently met the man identified as her boyfriend, but wanted to clear her name when it came to gang affiliations.

"Her daughter was not in a gang, she had no gang ties, she was a working young lady — they really want the public to know she was a good person, and she had nothing to do with gangs," Valenti said. "She had just met this guy, and leaves behind a son, who now, is like so many children in this city unfortunately who now don't have a parent."

The busy intersection of Ridge Avenue, Peterson Avenue and Paulina Street in Edgewater on Tuesday [DNAinfo/Linze Rice]

 

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