Police describe Chatham attack as unprovoked; suspect remains hospitalized
A 48-year-old Chicago woman has been charged with first-degree murder in the broad-daylight stabbing of a 7-year-old girl on a Chatham neighborhood sidewalk Saturday, according to Chicago police. Shavdon Gayden faces one count of first-degree murder in the death of Eddimar Hernandez-Chacon, who was pronounced dead at Comer Children’s Hospital.
According to police and prosecutors, Eddimar was walking with her 17-year-old sister just before noon Saturday when Gayden allegedly grabbed the younger child and fatally stabbed her on a busy thoroughfare, the Chicago Tribune reported. A security photo from a nearby business, cited by WLS-TV, showed the girl walking hand in hand with an older female at the time of the attack.
Bystanders chased after Gayden and held her until officers arrived and made the arrest at the scene, police said. The Chicago Sun-Times, citing an initial police report, described the attack as “unprovoked.” It was not immediately clear whether there was any relationship between Gayden and the girl, and police declined Sunday to comment on a possible motive or provide further details.
The Sun-Times also reported that Gayden’s criminal history included reports of other seemingly random attacks, including striking a Chicago Transit Authority employee. Gayden pleaded guilty to that charge and received two years of probation, the newspaper reported.
A spokesperson for the Cook County state’s attorney’s office, which is prosecuting the case, said in an email that Gayden was supposed to appear in court on Monday but remained hospitalized. A new hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday.
Matthew Hendrickson, press secretary for the Cook County public defender, said the office was assigned to Gayden at a Monday hearing but declined to comment further.
ABC7 reported Monday that Gayden’s mother, who requested anonymity, apologized for the stabbing and said she had struggled to get her daughter mental health treatment.
In a GoFundMe post raising funds for a funeral, the girl’s uncle, Richard Hernandez-Chacon, wrote that Eddimar’s “passing leaves an indescribable void and profound grief in all of us who loved her.” The AP reported that attempts to reach members of Gayden’s family by phone were unsuccessful and that messages left with Hernandez-Chacon and another person believed to be a family member were not immediately returned.