Police say Bartlett shooting stemmed from a spat between teens

A Bartlett Police official said a fight between a group of teenagers may have resulted in the shooting of a 17-year-old boy Tuesday night.

Authorities said the teenager was walking westbound on Oneida Avenue near South Eastern Avenue in the area of Bartlett Elementary School at about 7:30 p.m. when he was shot by a male suspect who was last seen riding a bicycle eastbound on Oneida.

The victim suffered nonlife-threatening injuries and was transported to a nearby hospital. He remained in the hospital Wednesday, authorities said.

Meanwhile, Elgin Area School District U-46 officials are taking precautions to make sure there is no retaliation, said district safety coordinator John Heiderschedt. He confirmed the victim is a student at a U-46 high school, though he wouldn’t say which one.

“There are students involved in this situation that go to many of our different high schools, so this isn’t just a one community issue,” he said.

There is no indication that Tuesday’s shooting was gang-related, Police Cmdr. Michael McGuigan said.

“Evidently, there had been some arguments between a group of kids over the past few days and that culminated in this between these two individuals,” McGuigan said.

McGuigan said police are trying to verify a rumor that the fight between these teens was over a girl. Investigators are following up on some good leads and know the identities of the teens who were involved in the earlier fights with the victim.

“We do not have any suspects at this point,” McGuigan said, adding however, that charges are expected soon.

U-46’s Heiderschedt said U-46 schools are operating as normal, but administrators, teachers and staff at the schools have been advised to be proactive and reach out to students who were involved so that they “not engage in any kind of retaliation or revenge,” Heiderschedt said.

“This is just senseless violence,” Heiderschedt said. “When these things happen, we rally all of our supports to work with students about not allowing these kinds of things to occur.”

Heiderschedt said the school district has been working with the police department on the investigation and has taken precautions where necessary. As the shooting wasn’t random, officials don’t believe other students are in danger, he added.

“This was an incident that was targeted.” Heiderschedt said. “If there is a need to do any kind of safety-related activities at the school, we would.”

The shooting is the second in two months in Bartlett. In early February, a man in his early 20s was shot at a Bartlett nightclub and suffered serious injuries. Police are seeking a 23-year-old Elgin man in connection with that shooting at Cadillac Ranch.

The Bartlett Police Department is urging anyone with information about the latest shooting to contact the investigations section at (630) 837-0846.