COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE — A 6-year-old girl critically wounded in a Logan Square shooting earlier this week was another innocent kid caught in a Chicago gang war, prosecutors said Thursday.
"There's something wrong when a child can't play on a sidewalk without fearing she'll get shot," Assistant State's Attorney Patricia Berlin said during a juvenile court hearing Thursday.
According to Berlin, 6-year-old Jaylene Bermeo was playing with sidewalk chalk alongside two siblings and three cousins about 8 p.m. Monday when someone inside a silver four-door Hyundai opened fire — striking Jaylene in her back.
The girl is recovering, prosecutors said, but remains in critical condition with a punctured lung and a bullet lodged in her chest, close to her heart.
RELATED: 6-Year-Old Girl Shot In Back As Quiet Logan Square Block Rocked By Violence
Prosecutors have charged a 17-year-old boy with driving the Hyundai used in Monday night's shooting. The boy is a documented Maniac Latin Disciple gang member, authorities said, with prior arrests for drugs, reckless conduct, trespassing and possession of a stolen motor vehicle.
Police believe the shooter was aiming for rival Spanish Cobra gang members near Jaylene when the girl was shot, Berlin said, noting that the Latin Disciples and Spanish Cobras "are at war."
There had been shootings in the area in recent weeks, and prosecutors said Jaylene's aunt's house was "associated with Spanish Cobras."
Jaylene was at her aunt's house in the 2100 block of North Bingham Street for a house party Monday, according to authorities. The girl and relatives were playing in the backyard before moving out front to test out sidewalk chalk, Berlin said.
Around the same time, two pedestrians saw a silver Hyundai pull out of an alley around the corner on Francis Place, prosecutors said.
The pedestrians noticed a young Asian male behind the wheel, Berlin said, and two other occupants — one in the front passenger seat and one in the back seat. The car made a quick left out of the alley and turned on to Bingham.
Moments later, the pedestrians and other witnesses heard several loud shots, according to prosecutors. Police would later recover a dozen .40 caliber shell casings on the scene.
Jaylene's relatives rushed the girl to St. Mary's Hospital, Berlin said. Jaylene was later taken to Stroger Hospital, where doctors on Thursday released a statement saying she was improving and on the road to recovery.
Since there were Spanish Cobras in the area when Jaylene was shot, prosecutors said, detectives surmised the girl's shooter was probably a rival Maniac Latin Disciple.
Police found the 17-year-old alleged driver by searching their gang database for young Asian males who identified as Latin Disciples, prosecutors noted. The pedestrian witnesses were then able to identify the boy in a photo array.
He is charged with aggravated discharge of a firearm and aggravated battery with a firearm. The boy's name and mugshot are not being released because he is charged as a juvenile.
Cook County Judge Stuart F. Lubin on Thursday agreed to hold the boy in custody pending trial, saying, "He's a danger to the communty."
According to court testimony, the 17-year-old is from the Philippines; he lives in Portage Park with his mother.
Locals earlier this week said they were rocked by the shooting.
"I was inside alone, and I heard people driving up and then, boom boom boom boom!" said one witness who heard the shots. "Then everyone started screaming. I went out and saw a little girl on the ground bleeding, and someone picked her up. Then I screamed too."
The shooting occurred at a "known problem house" that is believed to house gang members, neighbors and Ald. Proco Joe Moreno (1st) said.
Moreno said he is working with the police department to support a plan of action to protect residents and prevent further violence in the area.
RELATED:
Shootings Have Logan Square On Edge: 'It's Scary Stuff; Everyone's Worried'
6-Year-Old Girl Shot In Back As Quiet Logan Square Block Rocked By Violence
Teen Charged With Shooting 6-Year-Old Girl In Back In Logan Square Drive-By
6-Year-Old Shooting Victim Now In 'Good Spirits,' On Road To Recovery
For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here: