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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, On Monday, July 4, 2022, the City of Highland
3Park and thousands of its residents and neighbors gathered for
4its annual Fourth of July parade; and
 
5    WHEREAS, For generations, Highland Park has hosted this
6parade, one of the largest Fourth of July gatherings in the
7northern suburbs of Chicago; and
 
8    WHEREAS, At 10:14 a.m., tragedy struck as an alleged lone
9gunman opened fire with a semi-automatic rifle at the
10intersection of 2nd Street and Central Avenue in downtown
11Highland Park; and
 
12    WHEREAS, In less than one minute, the assailant shot 83
13bullets into the crowd, killing 7 and injuring dozens; and
 
14    WHEREAS, As residents ran from the gunfire, placed their
15bodies over their loved ones, and sought safety, first
16responders who had come to watch the parade put themselves in
17harm's way; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members
19and community volunteers rushed to the scene and bravely
20worked side by side with fire and police personnel and medical

 

 

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1professionals, helping to save lives through their quick
2action; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Law enforcement officers from Highland Park and
4hundreds of others throughout the State of Illinois and at all
5levels of government worked together to quickly secure
6downtown Highland Park and later apprehend the suspect; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Mayor Nancy Rotering admirably and strongly led
8the grieving Highland Park community in the minutes
9immediately after the shooting and in the weeks and months
10following the shooting, as the international community looked
11to her leadership; and
 
12    WHEREAS, City Manager Ghida Neukirch selflessly ran to the
13scene of the shooting to provide first aid to gunshot victims,
14going far above and beyond her duties and providing
15extraordinary care to the Highland Park community in the
16moments following the shooting; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Physicians, nurses, and other staff raced to
18Highland Park Hospital to assist the injured, some coming
19straight from the parade, doing incredible work under intense
20and difficult circumstances; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Hundreds of therapists, counselors, and social

 

 

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1workers have supported those experiencing trauma from what
2they witnessed during and after the shooting; therefore, be it
 
3    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
4HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
5SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we mourn the lives lost at the
6hands of gunfire in the City of Highland Park on July 4, 2022
7and all those around the State of Illinois who have been lost
8to gun violence and recognize the surviving families that live
9with the trauma of their losses; and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That we especially remember the lives of
11Katherine Goldstein, Irina McCarthy, Kevin McCarthy, Stephen
12Straus, Jacqueline Sundheim, Nicholas Toledo-Zaragoza, and
13Eduardo Uvaldo; and be it further
 
14    RESOLVED, That we honor the City of Highland Park and its
15law enforcement, first responders, and community leaders for
16their service to the people of Illinois; and be it further
 
17    RESOLVED, That we urge leaders to continue to do
18everything in their power to ensure no other community
19experiences the trauma of gun violence, so that this horrific
20tragedy shall not be in vain; and be it further
 
21    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be

 

 

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1delivered to the City of Highland Park.