Belleville teen, shot 8 times near skateboard park in October, has died of injuries
A Belleville East High School student who was shot eight times in early October on North Second Street near Belleville Skateboard Park has died, according to a family spokeswoman.
Hayden Chisholm, 16, died Saturday morning in the trauma intensive-care unit at St. Louis University Hospital, said Carrie Gonzalez, 45, longtime partner of his father, Jeremy Chisholm, of Belleville.
“(Hayden had) been fighting for his life for three months,” Gonzalez said on Saturday afternoon.
The shooting occurred just before 7 p.m. on Oct. 5.
Hayden was defending a friend against two other teens, who were trying to steal his backpack, which apparently contained marijuana, Gonzalez said. The friend, also 16, survived the attack.
Gonzalez called Hayden a “hero” whose death was needless.
“He died over weed,” she said. “He died over something you can pretty much get anywhere these days. He died protecting a friend, and it has devastated so many lives.
“It’s not just destroyed our family or our extended family and friends. It has completely and utterly destroyed the assailants as well. Their one choice and their one action created so much devastation, and they ruined their own lives in the process.”
Belleville police told the family that the two suspects included a 17-year-old and a 19-year-old, and the latter was still being sought by the U.S. Marshals Service, Gonzalez said.
Police confirmed Saturday that Jalyn A. Givens, 19, of Cahokia Heights, has been charged with one count each of aggravated battery/discharging a firearm, attempted armed robbery with a firearm and attempted armed robbery with a firearm in the shooting.
Givens hasn’t yet been apprehended, according to police. A juvenile suspect was arrested and released pending further review.
“We will be in communication with the St. Clair County state’s attorney’s office with this latest development that (the shooting victim) passed,” Assistant Police Chief Mark Heffernan said.
Police responded to a 911 call at 6:51 p.m. Oct. 5 and found a 16-year-old male lying in the road in the 900 block of North Second Street with multiple gunshot wounds, Capt. Todd Keilbach reported.
Officers provided first aid to the victim before an ambulance arrived and transported him to a St. Louis hospital.
“The initial investigation suggests that the victim was involved in an altercation over narcotics with two other male suspects just before the shooting,” Keilbach said at the time.
Witnesses reportedly told police that the two suspects, described as young Black males wearing black clothing, fled toward West H Street, one on foot and the other on a bicycle.
Gonzalez described Hayden as an active teen who played volleyball at Central Junior High School and football his freshman year at Belleville East and loved other outdoor sports.
“He was a class clown,” she said. “He was very kindhearted, loving, compassionate. He loved animals (including several Siberian huskies in the family).”
A GoFundMe campaign had been set up to help with Hayden’s medical care and rehabilitation. The family now plans to use the money for funeral arrangements, which are pending.
People can donate on the GoFundMe page.
This story was originally published December 28, 2024 at 5:36 PM.
