Shavon Gayden faces first-degree murder charges after an unprovoked attack in Chatham claimed the life of seven-year-old Eddimar Hernández Chacón.
The tragedy unfolded in seconds on a sidewalk in the 8600 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue. Shortly before noon on Saturday, seven-year-old Eddimar Hernández Chacón was walking hand-in-hand with her 17-year-old sister when a stranger approached.
Shavon Gayden, 48, pulled a knife from her bag and first lunged at the older sibling. The teenager managed to dodge the blade, but Gayden grabbed Eddimar, threw her to the ground, and began stabbing her repeatedly.
Moments before the encounter on the street, Gayden had been inside a business on Cottage Grove threatening a clerk. After the stabbing, an angry crowd converged on the scene. As Gayden attempted to walk away. members of the public pursued her. and at least one person struck her. leaving her unconscious with an arterial bleed and a head injury by the time police arrived.
Officers on the scene found themselves in a desperate race against time. Radio recordings captured the urgency of the moment. with one officer shouting. “Where is the ambulance?” as others fought to stop the child’s hemorrhaging. When the ambulance arrived about 10 minutes later. it was escorted to Comer Children’s Hospital. where Eddimar was declared dead at 1:01 p.m. An autopsy revealed she had been stabbed four times in the back.
Authorities later recovered additional knives from Gayden’s bag. She remains hospitalized for her head injury and was absent from Monday’s court hearing, where her detention proceeding was postponed until Wednesday.
The fatal attack occurred while Gayden was already a wanted person. Judicial records reveal a pattern of random violence: in September 2023. she was accused of striking a CTA employee and threatening to stab her. Although she pleaded guilty to those charges in October 2024 and received two years of probation. she stopped appearing for court hearings in early 2025. An arrest warrant issued in February 2025 remained active when she was taken into custody on Saturday. Following the CTA incident. she had also been arrested for attacking a shelter worker. for which she completed six months of judicial supervision in January.
For the family of the young victim, the loss is absolute. On Sunday, they gathered at the site of the attack to honor the girl. Her uncle has since launched a fundraising campaign. which had reached approximately $16. 500 by Wednesday afternoon. intended to cover funeral costs and provide a dignified farewell.
“For our family, Eddimar will always be a very special girl,” her uncle wrote. “Her departure leaves an impossible void to explain and a very great pain in all of us who love her.”
Chicago crime Eddimar Hernández Chacón Shavon Gayden Chatham stabbing murder charge violent record