POLICE: TEEN DEAD AFTER SHOOTING

What began allegedly as a prank ended in tragedy Sunday night

A 16-year-old Crown Point boy is dead after an apparent prank involving a handgun turned deadly late Sunday night.

Lake County Sheriff ’s officers were sent to a call about a shooting at around 11:40 p.m. on Sunday in the 12000 block of Burr Street in unincorporated Crown Point, sheriff ’s spokeswoman Pam Jones said in a release Tuesday. They found a young man waving his arms and calling for help upon arrival, Jones said.

The young man took the officers into the backyard, where they found a boy lying near a firepit with a gunshot wound to the chest, Jones said.

An officer immediately started lifesaving measures, but neither he nor the Crown Point Fire paramedics who arrived shortly after were successful in reviving the boy, she said.

The boy has been identified as Jason M. Paholik Jr., according to a Tuesday Lake County Coroner’s release.

An autopsy was performed Monday to determine the cause of death.

An initial investigation shows that Paholik was at the Burr Street residence with a group of friends when an 18-year-old pulled a firearm out of a backpack as a prank, Jones said in the release. The gun then went off, hitting Paholik in the chest and killing him, she said.

“The Lake County Sheriff’s Department extends its deepest condolences to the family and friends of the victim during this tragic time,” Lake County Sheriff Oscar Martinez said in the release. “The investigation into this incident remains ongoing, and anyone with additional information is urged to contact the Lake County Sheriff ’s Department.”

The suspect, on whom charges are still pending, was taken to Franciscan Crown Point for evaluation before getting taken into custody at the Lake County Jail, Jones said.

In October, Andrew Lenahan, 18, was shot to death at a gathering of teens in Union Township. The teen girl charged with a Level 5 felony county of reckless homicide in that case has been waived to adult court.