Marcus Chatman, 14, was shot days before his 15th birthday, his family said.
CHICAGO, IL — The mother of 14-year-old Marcus Chatman is calling for justice after her son was fatally shot late Thursday in Auburn Gresham while with people she believed were his friends.
Ahmani Hicks said her son was killed one week before his 15th birthday, turning a week that should have been about celebration into one focused on funeral plans. Chicago police said officers found the teen in the 8000 block of South Carpenter Street after a report of a person shot. No arrests had been announced, and Area Two detectives continued to investigate.
Police said officers responded just after 11:30 p.m. Thursday and found a 14-year-old boy with multiple gunshot wounds. The Chicago Fire Department treated him at the scene, and he was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Hicks said she first thought she would speak with Marcus the next day because he was spending the night away from home. “I figured I just talk to Marcus tomorrow, and it didn’t go that way,” Hicks said. She said she was later told to go to the hospital, where she learned her son had died.
Hicks said Marcus was shot in the back and left in an alley near 80th Street and Carpenter Street. She said she believes people who were with him are connected to what happened. Police have not announced charges or publicly named a suspect. What led to the shooting remained unclear. Neighbors told local reporters they heard several gunshots, and officers taped off an alley as they searched for evidence. “They shoot my baby twice in the back,” Hicks said, describing what she said video showed. Police have said only that the case remains under investigation.
Marcus was remembered by family and coaches as a child who loved sports and grew up around youth football. Hicks said she kept him active in the Midwest Hawks youth football program from age 6 until he aged out at 13. Program officials said Marcus was beloved by his parents, brothers and former teammates. The team later posted a tribute saying his memory would remain part of the Midwest Hawks family. Hicks said the football community has helped with groceries, support and a fundraiser for services as she cares for her three younger sons, ages 10, 7 and 6.
The shooting happened during an extended Juneteenth holiday weekend marked by gun violence across Chicago. Police said victims over the weekend ranged in age from 14 to 70. Marcus was among the youngest people killed. Community activist Pastor Donovan Price responded to the scene Thursday night and said a child’s death spreads pain far beyond one household. “When a child is shot, there are so many, so many people affected,” Price said. Nearby resident Marilyn Jones said hearing about the death of a 14-year-old was heartbreaking because he was “just barely beginning to live his life.”
Hicks said she is waiting for a call from prosecutors or police telling her that someone has been arrested. “I pray the state’s attorney call me and say we got this person,” she said. No court dates had been set because no charges had been announced. Area Two detectives are handling the investigation, and authorities have not released further details about possible evidence, witnesses or motive. The Cook County medical examiner’s office had not been cited in early reports as releasing additional public findings beyond the identification reported by news outlets.
The Midwest Hawks planned to gather this week to honor Marcus, whose stepfather also coaches with the program. Hicks said the team’s support has helped her family stand through the first days after his death. She said her focus is on keeping her sons close while waiting for answers. “I pray that me and my boys stay strong for each other,” Hicks said. Instead of planning Marcus’ birthday, she said, she is planning his funeral. “He would be 15 Friday,” she said.
As of Tuesday, Chicago police had not announced an arrest in Marcus Chatman’s killing. His family and youth football community are preparing to remember him this week, with his 15th birthday falling Friday.
Author note: Last updated June 23, 2026.