Politics & Government

'This Can Happen Anywhere': Harris Visits A Grieving Highland Park

Vice President Kamala Harris urged families to "seek the support that you so rightly deserve" in the aftermath of the shooting.

Vice President Kamala Harris stopped in Highland Park Tuesday evening.
Vice President Kamala Harris stopped in Highland Park Tuesday evening. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — Vice President Kamala Harris made a stop in Highland Park Tuesday evening after giving a speech in Chicago. In the wake of a shooting that claimed seven lives and wounded dozens more, she told residents, "Of course we always say because it is true — our prayers are with you."

The vice president told those gathered, "This can happen anywhere, in any peace-loving community, and we should stand together and speak out about why it's got to stop," saying the nation must take a look at who can have weapons like the rifle used in Monday's shooting.

Names Of Highland Park Shooting Victims Released As Community Mourns

Find out what's happening in Grayslakefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Harris pledged the Biden administration's continued support, saying the FBI and ATF will continue to help investigators, even as a 21-year-old Highwood man faces seven charges of first-degree murder.

"We've got to take this stuff seriously, as seriously as you are," she told residents. "There's a lot of healing that's going to have to happen that is both physical and emotional."

Find out what's happening in Grayslakefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Rolling closures were expected Tuesday night on the Kennedy Expressway as Harris visited Highland Park in the wake of the July 4 parade shooting.

Harris made the stop after her address at the National Education Association convention in Chicago.

The vice president was joined by Mayor Nancy Rotering, Rep. Brad Schneider and State Sen. Julie Morrison, according to NBC Chicago.

Her visit comes a day after a gunman opened fire on the July 4 parade in downtown Highland Park.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden told reporters he was unsure whether he will visit Highland Park in the aftermath of the shooting, according to the New York Post.

The White House confirmed there are currently no plans for the president to visit Highland Park.

Earlier in the day, Harris confirmed she still intended to speak at the National Education Association summit, but did not announce her visit to Highland Park.

Harris was only recently in Illinois, stopping in both Chicago and Plainfield on June 24.

Five people died at the scene of Monday's shooting in Highland Park, with a sixth person dying later that day at a local hospital. Officials confirmed that a seventh gunshot victim died on Tuesday.

So far, the names of six of those killed have been released:

Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78, of Morelos, Mexico

Jacquelyn "Jacki" Sundheim, 63, of Highland Park

Stephen Straus, 88, of Highland Park

Kevin McCarthy, 37, of Highland Park

Irina McCarthy, 35, of Highland Park

Katherine Goldstein, 64, of Highland Park


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