Charges filed in killing near Obama's home

A 20-year-old man was charged with killing a 15-year-old boy blocks from President Barack Obama's Hyde Park home earlier this year. 
Authorities charged Kevin Culverson, of the 700 block of East 50th Place, with first-degree murder. Culverson is due in court Wednesday.
Police said he shot 15-year-old Cornelius German in the back about 9:40 p.m. in the 5000 block of South Evans Street on April 22 about 9;40 p.m. German died after midnight.
Culverson lives about a block from where he's alleged to have killed German

Shootings in Chicago October 27, 28, 2013

37-year-old man shot in South Shore

At about 4 p.m., a 37-year-old man was shot in the 7600 block of South Shore Drive.
The man was taken in serious-to-critical condition from the South Shore neighborhood to Northwestern Memorial Hospital

55-year-old shot in Hyde Park

On the South Side, a 55-year-old man was critically hurt in a shooting in the East Hyde Park neighborhood.
Someone who had been involved in an earlier altercation with the 55-year-old walked up to the man about 8:55 p.m., as he stood on the sidewalk in the 5400 block of South Cornell Avenue.
The shooter pulled out a handgun and opened fire, hitting the man in the cheek, neck, and chest.
The man was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition.

18-year-old woman shot in Austin

At about 9:15 p.m., an 18-year-old woman was shot in the leg and hand.
The shooting happened in the 5800 block of West Superior Street, in the South Austin neighborhood.
The woman was talking with other people on the sidewalk when two male assailants approached and opened fire. The woman was taken to Loyola University Medical Center, where her condition was stabilized

Man tried to assault woman in South Side park

A sketch has been released of a man police said tried to sexually assault a woman in a South Side park Tuesday afternoon.
It happened in the 5900 block of South Cornell Avenue at 4:15 p.m. Tuesday.
The man was first seen walking in the street with his genitals exposed before he grabbed and woman and pushed her to the ground. He then tried to force her to perform a sex act.
Police described the man as being black, between the ages of 16 and 20, 5-foot-7, and between 140 and 150 pounds. He has a dark complexion, short and curly black hair, and was wearing blue jeans, and white leather gym shoes the

Man found shot to death as eviction notice served

A man in his 60s was found shot to death as an eviction notice was being served at his Hyde Park home.
Police were called to a condominium complex in the 1000 block of East 53rd street about 9:50 a.m.
The man was found inside his home.
The Cook County medical examiner's office, citing preliminary information, said the man apparently suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the neck

29-year-old man shot and killed in Hyde Park

The 29-year-old killed was shot in the 1400 block of East 52nd Street about 1:50 a.m. He was shot at his home, and died there.

Trial set for cable repairman accused of 2006 slaying

A jury was selected Tuesday to decide the fate of Anthony Triplett, a cable repairman charged with raping and strangling Urszula Sakowska, 23, in December 2006 when he went to her Southwest Side home to fix their Internet service.
At the time of Sakowska's slaying, Triplett was a suspect in the similar killing of Janice Ordidge, 39, who was found raped and strangled seven weeks earlier in the bathtub of her Hyde Park home. Triplett had been sent to Ordidge's home to fix her Internet service, authorities allege.
Chicago police came under fire after Triplett's arrest when it was revealed that his DNA had not been sent to the state crime lab for comparison with evidence found at the scene of Ordidge's slaying, despite his being an early suspect. The DNA matched, and critics contended Sakowska's slaying could have been prevented if the tests had been done sooner.
Prosecutors had been seeking the death penalty for Triplett before it was abolished in 2011. In the meantime, Triplett's team of lawyers has gone through several changes and filed a lengthy stream of motions to suppress evidence.
Prosecutors are trying Triplett only for Sakowska's slaying but intend to bring out evidence that he also killed Ordidge. He faces a possible life sentence if he is convicted.
According to prosecutors, Triplett went to Ordidge's home in the 1600 block of East 50th Street on Oct. 21, 2006, to fix her Comcast Internet service. While he was there, Ordidge allegedly told a friend over the phone that Triplett had made remarks about her appearance that made her uncomfortable. Two days later, police officers conducting a well-being check found her body in the bathtub, prosecutors said.
Police interviewed Triplett after the slaying and took forensic samples from the scene. According to a timeline released later by police, the state crime lab received the samples in early November, but DNA testing that linked Triplett to Ordidge's attack was not finished until Dec. 12, four days after Sakowska's murder

1 shot, 1 shot dead in Hyde Park

About 12:15 a.m., someone opened fire in the hallway of an apartment building in the 5200 block of South Harper Avenue.
A 39-year-old man was shot in the chest and died at the scene.
A 22-year-old man was also hurt in the same shooting, Greer said. The younger man was struck in the hand and was taken to John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital in good condition

Boy, 15, shot to death 4 blocks from Obama home

A 15-year-old boy who lived down the block from President Barack Obama's Hyde Park home was found shot to death in a backyard about half a mile away.
Officers responded to a call of shots fired in the 5000 block of South Evans Avenue around 9:40 p.m. Monday and found Cornelius German unresponsive, a gunshot wound to his back, police said.
German lived in the 1000 block of Hyde Park Boulevard, down the block from the Obama home. He was found shot to death a little more than four blocks away.

14-year-old sexually assaulted in Hyde Park

A 14-year-old girl was sexually assaulted Tuesday morning while she walked her dog through the Hyde Park neighborhood.
The attack happened about two blocks from President Barack Obama's home in the Kenwood neighborhood.
The attacker approached her from behind and forced her between two garages between 10:30 and 10:45 a.m..
Police said the attacker was a black man between 35 and 40 years old, between 6-foot-2 and 6-foot-4 with a slim-to-medium build. He had short black hair, brown eyes, no facial hair, dark complexion and was wearing a black jacket with yellow stripes from the shoulder down, blue jeans and black Nike shoes.

4 girls charged after U. of C. students robbed, pistol-whipped

A judge set bail today at $100,000 each for three teen-age girls charged as adults with the armed robbery of two University of Chicago students this week near the South Side campus.
A gun brandished by a fourth suspect, a 14-year-old girl facing juvenile charges, discharged while the girl was pistol-whipping a 28-year-old female student early Monday, but no one was shot. The woman was accompanied by another student, a 22-year-old man.
Michelle Jones, 17, of the 12200 block of South Elizabeth Street, Nataya Collins, 16, of 1200 block of West 74th Place, and Kenyadrea Simpson, 15, of the 500 block of West 125th Place each were charged as adults with armed robbery.
A judge today set their bails at $100,000 each.
The 14-year-old girl was in custody of juvenile authorities and cited in a juvenile delinquency petition with armed robbery and attempted robbery.
The two students were walking down the street at 12:15 a.m. Monday in the 5600 block of South Blackstone Avenue when the 14-year-old, who is not being identified because she is a juvenile, and Simpson confronted them and said: “Give me your bags,” .
The 22-year-old man handed over his brown North Face book bag with his laptop inside, but when the female student refused to give up her bag, the 14-year-old hit her several times in the head with the gun, causing it to discharge.
No one was shot but the woman suffered multiple contusions to her head and was taken to University of Chicago Hospitals, where her condition had stabilized after receiving two staples in the left side of her head.
The 14-year-old, Simpson and Collins, who had been inside a 1990 Chrysler that was fleeing nearby, were taken into custody shortly after the incident.
Jones was arrested Tuesday about 2:30 p.m. in the 100 block of South Green Street in Calumet Park

Man killed in Hyde Park crash

In a fatal accident, a Hyde Park man crashed his Ford SUV into a tree in the 6000 block of South Cornell Avenue  at about 9:15 p.m. Wednesday.
Vinston Glover, 57, of the 5400 block of South Ingleside Avenue, was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 10:31 p.m.

Man killed after being struck by Metra train on South Side

A male was killed after being struck by a Metra Electric Line train on the South Side.
The No. 237 train struck the person at about 5:50 p.m. at 53rd Street in Hyde Park.
The victim was later identified as Jermaine Murray, of the 7300 block of South Woodlawn Avenue,

17-year-old shot in Hyde Park

A 17-year-old boy was shot in the Houston Playground Park on the 800 block of East 50th Street about 8:25 p.m. while playing basketball. He’s in stable condition at John H. Stroger Jr., Hospital of Cook County.

Woman shot in Hyde Park

Sunday night, a woman suffered a graze wound to her head in the 1100 block of East 43rd Street at about 11 p.m., police said. The 33-year-old victim was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center for treatment

Man shot in head during "Wilding/Flash Mob" incident in Hyde Park

A 25-year-old man was shot in the head at about 2:30 a.m. in the 1700 block of East 54th Street in the East Hyde Park neighborhood, police said. The man was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in serious condition.
Early reports indicated the shooting may have occurred among a large group "wilding/Flash Mobing" in the area

Police catch 2 armed robbery suspects in Hyde Park

Two people are in custody, including a juvenile, and are facing armed robbery charges after police arrested them early this morning minutes after they held up a man at gunpoint.
The boy and the man are being questioned and police are investigating whether they are responsible for similar crimes.
At about 12:15 a.m., police who were conducting a routine patrol were flagged down by a 25-year-old man on the 5300 block of South Drexel Avenue in the Hyde Park neighborhood.
The man told police that he was returning to his home from a trip and was carrying a laptop bag with an Apple laptop inside and a duffel bag along with his passport when three men went up to him and demanded the items.
One of the men had a gun and another man punched him, causing cuts and abrasions. The victim told the police the men fled in a 2003 gold Pontiac Grand Prix.
Police were able to track down the car and tried to pull it over but the men sped off, running through a red light. Eventually, police managed to stop the car near 47th and Wentworth Avenue where the people jumped out and ran on foot.
Two of the people were caught a short distance away but the third person managed to escape.
Police found a loaded .40-caliber semi-automatic handgun as well as the stolen items in the car.
Charges are pending.

29-year-old man shot in Hyde Park

In the Hyde Park neighborhood, a 29-year-old man was shot on the 5100 block of South Ingleside Avenue about 12:45 a.m. He was shot multiple times and taken to the University of Chicago hospital. Police described the shooting as a drive-by that may be gang related. Someone inside a passing black SUV shot at the man

Chicago Police Warn Restaurants About Orders Called In From Cell Phones

Some restaurants are now refusing to deliver to cell phone customers following a rash of robberies of their drivers.
Police say lots of food delivery drivers in Chicago are getting robbed by people using cell phones to target them.
So, Chicago police just issued a business alert. It warns business owners in the Chinatown and Hyde Park areas not to take any cell phone orders