CHICAGO (WLS) — Two men have been sentenced for the shooting death of 8-year-old Melissa Ortega.
In January 2022, the young girl was walking with her mom in Little Village near 26th Street and Pulaski Road.
The 8-year-old was struck by a stray bullet from a nearby gang shooting, police said.
Prosecutors said Xavier Guzman was driving when Emilio Corripio, then 16, started to shoot in the direction of an alleged rival gang.
Corripio pleaded guilty in March to first degree murder. At the time of the shooting, he was on juvenile probation for two carjackings and possession of a stolen vehicle.
He was sentenced to 27 years.
Three years after her death, Guzman also pleaded guilty to one count of murder. He was sentenced to 20 years.
Ortega had only been living in the Chicago area for a couple of months when she was killed.
Shortly after her death, her family released a statement saying in part, “Melissa hoped for a better life here: she wanted to learn English, she wanted to experience Chicago snow, she wanted to get a build-a-bear, she wanted to make Tik Tok dances with her friends. At age 8, she was a girl full of hope and had her whole life ahead of her. She sought to achieve the American Dream but was instead given American Violence.
As her mother laments, “Me mataron a mi bebé. Me la mataron … mi princesa mi dulce niña,” meaning “They killed my baby. They killed her … my princess my sweet girl.”
A mural was created by Milton Coronado to honor Melissa Ortega. The mural was a collaborative effort between Coronado, his non-profit organization The Mural Movement, Pilsen photographer and videographer William Guerrero who is known as The Kid from Pilsen on social media, and community activist Ricky Medina.
The video in the player above is from a previous report.
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