Shavon Gayden faces one count of first-degree murder, Chicago police announced Sunday. The attack occurred just before noon on a busy thoroughfare, where the girl was walking with her 17-year-old sister. According to police and prosecutors, Gayden grabbed the younger child and fatally stabbed her. Bystanders chased Gayden and held her until officers arrived; she was arrested at the scene.
Eddimar was pronounced dead at Comer Children's Hospital. A security photo from a nearby business showed the girl walking hand in hand with an older female moments before the attack, WLS-TV reported.
Gayden remains hospitalized and was unable to appear in court on Monday as scheduled. A new hearing has been set for Wednesday, according to the Cook County state's attorney's office. The public defender’s office, assigned to Gayden, declined to comment further.
Police have not disclosed a possible motive. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that initial police records described the attack as “unprovoked” and that Gayden’s criminal history includes a previous random assault on a transit employee, for which she received probation.
A GoFundMe campaign organized by the victim’s uncle, Richard Hernandez Chacon, said Eddimar’s “passing leaves an indescribable void and profound grief in all of us who loved her.” The mother of the suspect, who requested anonymity, apologized for the stabbing and said she had struggled to obtain mental health treatment for her daughter, ABC7 reported.