White Sox owner says ‘virtually no possibility' shooting originated inside ballpark

Chicago White Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf revealed Thursday that, while an investigation has not yet determined how gunfire wounded two women during a game at Guaranteed Rate Field last week, the possibility that the shots came from outside the ballpark has not been ruled out.

"I spoke to the Superintendent of the Chicago Police last night. He authorized me to tell everybody that regardless of what has been said in the past by anybody, the police have not ruled out the possibility or the probability that the gunshots came from outside the ballpark," Reinsdorf said during a press conference announcing the team's promotion of Chris Getz to senior vice president and general manager.

"I don't want to comment on the specific details because the police are still investigating," he added. "They haven't come to a final conclusion, but we have done a lot of investigation. We have gathered a lot of facts, and, without getting into the detail because I don't want to influence the police's decision, but the fact is based upon the information available to us, I see virtually no possibility that the gunshots came from within the ballpark. It's totally safe to be in this ballpark. I don't think a gun has ever gotten past our security. I think ultimately that will come out. I'm hopeful the police will finish their investigation as soon as possible."

His comments come after Interim Police Supt. Fred Waller said during a news conference earlier this week that investigators had nearly "dispelled" the possibility that the shots came from outside the ballpark.

"We're dispelling a lot of things. It coming from outside is something that we've almost completely dispelled, but we're still looking at every avenue," Waller said. "It's still under investigation. Something from inside, it could have happened that way, but we're looking at every avenue, exploring every lead and everything that we get. We're exploring."

The shooting left a 42-year-old and a 26-year-old woman, one of whom was a Chicago Public Schools teacher, injured Friday night.

The 42-year-old woman suffered a gunshot wound the leg, police said, while the other woman suffered a graze wound to the abdomen.

On Tuesday, a lawyer for the woman shot in the leg denied reports which stated she had brought a firearm into the park and accidentally fired it while in her seat.

The woman's attorney said that her injuries have been reviewed by "firearms and medical experts who confirm the gunshot wound our client sustained was not self-inflicted and was not the result of her accidentally discharging a firearm."

Lawyers for that woman said she is a White Sox season ticket holder. According to a police source, she is also a FOID card holder.

The woman has not been charged with a crime.

Officials have said little about where the bullets came from, or if someone brought a gun into the stadium.

According to NBC 5 Investigates, CPD has declined to release the initial police report, a document that is typically public information. And, while the post-game concert featuring Vanilla Ice was canceled due to "technical difficulties," the game carried on as scheduled.

Waller said the police department initially requested that the game be halted after the shooting was discovered.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said he was made aware of the shooting shortly after it occurred Friday, but he declined to say whether he was part of the decision to allow the game to continue or whether in hindsight that was the right choice.

“Obviously, this is an ongoing investigation and the Chicago Police Department has done a remarkable job of gathering all the evidence and as more information becomes available, that information will be reported,” Johnson said.

Police said the reason the game continued was largely "because initially, no one knew that anyone was shot."

"We didn't have an indication. No one flared up. No flare from a weapon. None of that. So we didn't know she was shot until the paramedics gave us the information that she was shot," Waller said Monday.

"We had reports of people being shot at, at Sox Park, but that wasn't confirmed. So, we allowed the game to continue not to create a panic," he added.

The White Sox said CPD has "complete authority" to determine "if anything is deemed to put public safety at risk."

"Upon receiving notification of this incident, CPD responded immediately and deployed additional resources while coordinating with White Sox security to maintain the safety of those who were in attendance or working at the game," police said in a statement.

Police and city officials have declined to release the initial police report or answer further questions on the incident that left two people hurt, saying it remains under investigation.