Two Shot at Funeral for Alleged Chicago Gang Member, Grievances for Shooting Victim Met with Additional Gang Violence

According to reports, two men were shot Monday morning (Nov. 26) in Chicago's South Side while attending a funeral service for 32-year-old James Holman, an alleged gang member who recently died during a violent gang-related shooting. Law enforcement allege that the two shootings - which resulted in the death of 21-year-old Sherman Miller and leaving another victim in extremely critical condition - were most likely retaliation gunfire from other gang members "paying respect" to Holman. Such bloodshed is just another unfortunate example of a violent, gang-related event which has impacted the city of Chicago over the past few years.

The two victims (who both have criminal records and are well-known members of the Gangster Disciples), were shot as they fled St. Columbanus Church while hundreds of mourners looked on in complete and utter shock.

Reverend Corey Brooks just wrapped up the eulogy for Holman and was about to exit the church when the gunfire broke out:

"We had the funeral about 12:15. I was finishing up the eulogy, so I went down and asked the family can I get permission to leave, and they were fine with it. So when I was out the side, they were going out the front with family and friends. That's when the all the gunfire broke out and it was just crazy. There was hollering and screaming and kids were running everywhere."

Witnesses described the scene as total chaos and panic - "When I came outside, you still can hear shooting. Boom! Boom! Boom! I still ran...people was running behind me," longtime Chicago Transit Authority worker Deborah Echols-Moore tearfully explained. "You didn't know which way to go or what to do. All I knew to do was run for my life... Can you imagine 1,200 people in a church and everybody's running? It was awful. We had babies crying," the 59-year-old told CBS.

Rev Brooks continues - "I preached that we have a great need for God and peace in our neighborhoods... Now we are living at a day and time where these younger criminals have no regard for life or for street rules... It was crazy. It was the worst thing you could imagine. People were running, screaming, trying to get safe. When people were going out the door, they saw the bodies."

Chicago officials are working hard to try and decrease gang violence, but covering such a largely populated area is difficult, especially when such violence is on the rise.

"None of it is OK," Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy insists. "And I don't want it to seem like we're managing it, but the realistic expectations have to be over the long term. Crime reduction is a process. We implement the strategies and the question is, 'Are we doing better than we were last year?' And the answer is 'yes.'"

While police are currently investigating the funeral shootings, it is a well-known fact throughout the area that there is a large, violent conflict between the Gangster Disciples and the Black Disciples. According to reports, of the 470 homicide victims in Chicago for 2012 so far, half are members of the GDs. Sixty percent of the city's murders are said to be gang-related.

A sign outside the St. Columbanus Church currently reads, "Pray for Peace."