On the evening of February 25, 2024, a shooting inside a home in the 8000 block of South Vincennes Avenue in West Chatham, Chicago, left three people dead, including 20-year-old Ladeverett West Ringgold. The victims — Ringgold, 14-year-old Amere P. Deese, and a 36-year-old man — were in Ringgold’s bedroom when a 16-year-old acquaintance, identified as Antonio Velasco, opened fire with a 9mm handgun with an extended clip. A fourth victim, a 16-year-old boy, was seriously wounded and expected to recover.

Ringgold was shot in the stomach and taken to Christ Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Video footage of Velasco fleeing the scene helped detectives identify him; he was arrested at a relative’s home in Hazel Crest and charged as an adult with three counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder, held without bond pending trial. Family members said the group were friends who often gathered at Ringgold’s house and described shock and grief, with relatives noting close ties between Velasco and one victim.

What information might help explain how someone trusted by the group became the shooter?