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http://www.post-trib.com/news/1739552,baby-shooting-0828.article
Cops say father shot girl before shooting himself
August 28, 2009
By Jon Seidel, Post-Tribune staff writer
GARY -- A 20-year-old man shot and killed his baby daughter Thursday night just as he was expected to release her to her uncle in downtown Gary, police said. Then he turned the gun on himself.
Cordell Richardson was expected by police to survive his murder-suicide attempt, and officers said they expect to file charges against him this morning.
Lake County Detective Alan Magurany, left, talks Thursday evening with fellow Lake County Detective David Eichelberger after collecting evidence at the scene of a shooting in which a 19-month-old girl was killed in the parking lot east of the U.S. Steel Yard in Gary.
(Scott M. Bort/Post-Tribune)
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• Baby shot, killed in parking lot
Officials said Richardson shot 19-month-old Eboni N. Richardson, of the 500 block of South Vermillion Street, in the chest before shooting himself in the head. She was pronounced dead a short time later.
The shooting took place in the parking lot of Bennigan's restaurant and the U.S. Steel Yard at 500 E. 5th Ave., according to the Lake County Coroner's office. It happened less than two hours before a game there was scheduled to begin.
Cpl. Gabrielle King, a spokeswoman for the Gary Police Department, said the shooting was connected neither to the restaurant nor the Gary South Shore RailCats baseball team. Fans filed into the stadium while police worked the crime scene, and the game continued as scheduled.
"They can still feel safe coming to the RailCats," King said of the fans. "They can still feel safe coming to Bennigan's."
The chaos that erupted when the shooting occurred was still coming into focus Thursday night. Police said they received several calls about 5:25 p.m. for incidents at 19th Avenue and Hanley Street, 600 Grant Street, and East 5th Avenue and Virginia Street.
Early reports indicated Richardson was expected to hand the child over to her mother. Later Thursday evening, police said they learned Richardson was expected instead to turn the girl over to her uncle.
Richardson was supposed to meet family members at an unknown location earlier in the night, King said, but never showed. He later agreed to meet in the downtown parking lot.
"It was just a mutual meeting place," King said.
Richardson arrived in a black sport utility vehicle, King said, and met a group of family members in a purple Pontiac. Instead of handing the child off, King said, Richardson shot the girl and then himself.
Next, King said, a passenger in the Pontiac got into the SUV to drive Richardson to The Methodist Hospitals Northlake campus, while the driver of the Pontiac tried to drive the baby there.
The Pontiac broke down at 4th Avenue and Monroe Street, King said. The driver of the SUV picked up the baby when he saw it being carried by foot to the hospital.
"That's why you have all this chaos," King said.
Contact Jon Seidel at 648- 3068 or jseidel@post-trib.com. Comment at www.post-trib.com.
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