Derik Johnson, 18, was shot and killed late on July 23, 2025, on Chicago’s Southwest Side in the West Lawn neighborhood. The attack took place in the 7200 block of South Avers Avenue while Johnson was walking with friends; a 15-year-old boy was wounded in the same exchange and later told investigators he played dead to survive. Initial accounts described a chaotic scene and several teens leaving in a rideshare after the shooting.

Within days authorities charged a 17-year-old with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and aggravated discharge of a firearm in connection with Johnson’s killing and the wounding of the 15-year-old. Charging documents and hearings allege the group had been at the 17-year-old’s home, where a dispute over two firearms—a .22-caliber pistol and a 9mm—escalated; prosecutors say the shooter then opened fire on the street. Reporters named the accused as 17-year-old Dariyun O’Neal and court records show he was ordered into juvenile detention as the case proceeded.

Did anyone in the West Lawn area see the teens that night or the moment they left the house?