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Chicago woman charged with first-degree murder in fatal stabbing of 7-year-old girl
Versión 2: A suspect has been named and charged: Shavon Gayden, 48, of Chicago, now faces one felony count of first-degree murder, her Monday hearing was called off because she was hospitalized, and a new hearing has been set for Wednesday.
En breve
Shavon Gayden, 48, of Chicago, has been charged with one felony count of first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of a 7-year-old girl who was walking in the city's Chatham neighborhood on Saturday morning, Chicago police said. Police said a woman carrying a sharp object stabbed the girl multiple times in the back and that bystanders chased and detained her until officers arrived. The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office identified the child as Edi Mari Hernandez Chacon; she was pronounced dead at Comer Children's Hospital. Police have not commented on a possible motive or said whether the two knew each other.
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Chicago police said Shavon Gayden, 48, of Chicago, has been charged with one felony count of first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of a 7-year-old girl who was walking along a sidewalk in the city's Chatham neighborhood on Saturday morning. Police said bystanders chased after the woman and detained her until officers arrived. [ 5 , 6 , 7 ]
Police said the girl was walking in the Chatham neighborhood late Saturday morning when a woman carrying an unspecified sharp object approached her and stabbed her multiple times in the back. Newsweek reported that police placed the attack at about 11:55 a.m. in the 8600 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue, and the New York Post, citing WLS, said it happened shortly before noon. Television networks showed a commercial strip lined with a restaurant, a nail salon and a market cordoned off by police tape afterward, the Associated Press reported. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office identified the child as Edi Mari Hernandez Chacon. She was pronounced dead at Comer Children's Hospital, and the medical examiner's office told Newsweek the cause of death was multiple stab wounds and the manner of death was homicide. Outlets render the girl's name differently, with the Guardian using “Eddimar Hernandez-Chacon” and the New York Post “Edimari Hernandez Chacon.” [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
Gayden was initially scheduled to appear for a hearing Monday morning but was hospitalized and did not appear, the Cook County State's Attorney's Office said in an email; her injuries were not considered life-threatening. The Guardian reported that a new hearing was scheduled for Wednesday. Matthew Hendrickson, press secretary for the Cook County Public Defender, said the office was assigned to Gayden at a hearing Monday and declined to comment further, according to the Associated Press and CNN. [ 5 , 6 , 7 ]
The Guardian, citing the Chicago Tribune, reported that police and prosecutors said the girl was walking with her 17-year-old sister when Gayden allegedly grabbed the younger child and stabbed her on a busy thoroughfare. The Associated Press reported that a security photo from a nearby business showed the girl walking hand in hand with an older female and that police did not share information about that person; Newsweek said police described the girl as walking with her family. Police have not commented on a possible motive, and the Associated Press reported it was not immediately clear whether the attacker and the girl had any relationship. The Chicago Sun-Times, cited by the Guardian, reported that an initial police report described the attack as “unprovoked” and that Gayden's criminal history included other seemingly random attacks, including striking a Chicago Transit Authority employee, a charge for which she pleaded guilty and received two years of probation. [ 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
In a GoFundMe post to raise funds for a funeral, the girl's uncle, Richard Hernandez Chacon, wrote that her “passing leaves an indescribable void and profound grief in all of us who loved her,” according to the Associated Press and CNN. Mayor Brandon Johnson said in a post on X that he was “heartbroken by the killing of a 7-year-old Chicago girl who was simply walking down the street with her family,” adding that “no child should ever have to fear for her life simply walking through her neighborhood.” Alderwoman Michelle Harris said she was “deeply saddened by the senseless stabbing” in her neighborhood and thanked the “bystanders who quickly intervened,” saying their actions “may have prevented further harm.” Residents interviewed by WLS expressed outrage at the attack, the New York Post reported. [ 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
Por qué importa
The attack happened in daylight on a commercial strip in a residential Chicago neighborhood and drew statements from the mayor, a local alderwoman and an outpouring of grief from residents, as reported by the outlets covering it. With a first-degree murder charge filed and the suspect hospitalized rather than in court, the case now moves into the courts, where the motive and any relationship between the two remain unanswered by police.
Datos clave
- Shavon Gayden, 48, of Chicago, has been charged with one felony count of first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of a 7-year-old girl, Chicago police said in a statement. [ 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- Police said the girl was walking in the Chatham neighborhood on Saturday morning when a woman carrying an unspecified sharp object approached her and stabbed her multiple times in the back. [ 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- Bystanders chased after the woman and detained her until officers arrived, police said; she was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and arrested. [ 2 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office identified the child as Edi Mari Hernandez Chacon, and she was pronounced dead at Comer Children's Hospital. [ 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- The medical examiner's office told Newsweek the cause of death was multiple stab wounds and the manner of death was listed as homicide. [ 2 ]
- Gayden was initially scheduled to appear for a hearing Monday morning but was hospitalized and did not appear, the Cook County State's Attorney's Office said; her injuries were not considered life-threatening. [ 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- A new hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday, according to a Cook County state's attorney spokesperson. [ 6 ]
- Police have not commented on a possible motive for the stabbing and have declined to provide further details; the Associated Press reported it was not immediately clear whether the attacker and the girl had any relationship. [ 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
Confirmado por varias fuentes
- A 7-year-old girl was fatally stabbed while walking in Chicago's Chatham neighborhood on Saturday morning. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- Police said a woman with a sharp object stabbed her multiple times in the back; Newsweek placed the attack at about 11:55 a.m. in the 8600 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue. [ 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office identified the girl as Edi Mari Hernandez Chacon, and she was pronounced dead at Comer Children's Hospital. [ 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- Bystanders chased and detained the suspect until police arrived, police said, and she was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and arrested. [ 2 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- Shavon Gayden, 48, of Chicago, was charged with one felony count of first-degree murder, Chicago police said. [ 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- Gayden was scheduled for a Monday hearing but was hospitalized and did not appear; her injuries were not considered life-threatening, the Cook County State's Attorney's Office said. [ 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- Mayor Brandon Johnson said he was “heartbroken” by the killing, and Alderwoman Michelle Harris said she was “deeply saddened by the senseless stabbing.” [ 1 , 2 ]
Aún sin aclarar
- What prompted the stabbing Police have not commented on a possible motive; the Chicago Sun-Times reported that an initial police report described the attack as “unprovoked,” a single-source account.
- Whether the attacker and the girl had any relationship Police have not said, and the documents state only that no relationship was immediately clear.
- Who the girl was walking with before the attack Documents differ: the Guardian, citing the Chicago Tribune, said police and prosecutors described her as walking with her 17-year-old sister; the Associated Press reported a security photo showed her walking hand-in-hand with an older female and that police did not share information about that person; Newsweek said police described her as walking with her family.
- How the girl's name is spelled Outlets render it differently: “Edi Mari Hernandez Chacon” in the Associated Press, Newsweek and CNN accounts, “Eddimar Hernandez-Chacon” in the Guardian and “Edimari Hernandez Chacon” in the New York Post.
- Shavon Gayden's criminal history The Guardian, citing the Chicago Sun-Times, reported prior seemingly random attacks including striking a Chicago Transit Authority employee, for which she pleaded guilty and received two years of probation; no other document in the set mentions this.
- Gayden's plea or the substance of her court appearance Her Monday hearing did not take place because she was hospitalized, and the Cook County Public Defender's office declined to comment further, according to the documents.
- The exact time of death Documents say only that she was pronounced dead on Saturday afternoon at Comer Children's Hospital.
Qué dicen los medios locales
Cronología, hora local
- Saturday: a woman approaches the 7-year-old girl as she walks in the Chatham neighborhood and stabs her multiple times in the back, according to Chicago police; the New York Post, citing WLS, places the attack shortly before 12 p.m. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- On 4 October the New York Post publishes its account, reporting that bystanders detained the attacker and that the girl was pronounced dead on Saturday afternoon. [ 1 ]
- On 4 October Newsweek publishes the Chicago Police Department statement, the medical examiner's findings and Mayor Brandon Johnson's response. [ 2 ]
- On 4 October the Associated Press reports that the suspect was arrested and that police declined to provide further details or identify her. [ 3 ]
- On 5 October the Seattle Times, in an Associated Press report, and CNN report that Shavon Gayden, 48, has been charged with first-degree murder and that her Monday hearing was called off because she was hospitalized. [ 5 , 7 ]
- On 5 October the Guardian reports the charge, the account of the girl walking with her 17-year-old sister and a new hearing scheduled for Wednesday. [ 6 ]
- On 6 October CNN publishes the charge, the postponed hearing and the family's GoFundMe statement. [ 7 ]