A 24-year-old man and a 31-year-old man were taken to Stroger Hospital in critical condition.



A 26-year-old man was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where his condition had stabilized. He was standing on the street and suffered a leg wound, police said.



"Same as it always is," said a neighbor who asked not to be identified. "Drugs."



The five killed over the past four weeks were all men: Wednesday's victim; a 21-year-old Tuesday; a 22-year-old Sunday; a 36-year-old Nov. 4; and a 22-year-old Oct. 27. The 15 wounded range in age from 14 to 47 and include three teens shot Oct. 23 in the same block in the latest incident.



Police said Wednesday's shooting was similar to a Saturday homicide that left 22-year-old Anthony Jackson dead in the 700 block of North Hamlin Avenue. In that shooting, someone sprayed Jackson's car with gunfire, police said. He lost control of the car and hit several parked vehicles.



Police set a wide crime scene Wednesday afternoon, though some neighbors ignored the tape. Traffic was closed for blocks in each direction, and CTA buses were rerouted around the area.



Family members of the victims rushed to the south end of the crime scene, ducked under tape and stopped when a neighbor told them the police would lock them up. Their concern was that a relative lay dead in the car.



They and others arrived not long after an ambulance on the way to a hospital drove the wrong way south on St. Louis with a marked police SUV behind it.



Adding to their confusion was that the four shot were taken to three hospitals.



Plainclothes police at the scene wore hoodies and knit caps. Many of the uniformed officers at the scene tried to keep gloved hands warm behind duty vests or in the pockets of overcoats.



Police broke down the crime scene more than two hours later after investigators collected shell casings and filmed the scene. A Chicago Fire Department engine screamed down Chicago Avenue so firefighters could wash blood from the pavement. Cars guarding the scene were released back to regular duty.



Earlier in the day, a 17-year-old boy was shot in the West Woodlawn neighborhood on the South Side.



The shooting happened at 9:30 a.m. in the 6200 block of South King Drive. The teen, who was on the street, felt pain and discovered he was shot, police said.



The teen was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where his condition had stabilized, police said.