CHICAGO (TCN) — A 48-year-old woman has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the fatal stabbing of a 7-year-old girl who was out walking with her sister.
Eddimar Hernandez Chacon was walking with her sister Oct. 3 when Shavon Gayden allegedly approached them, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. The two girls were holding hands as they walked. According to a police report obtained by the Sun-Times, Gayden allegedly stabbed the child in a “unprovoked” attack. She allegedly initially aimed for Hernandez Chacon’s older sister, who ducked out of the way, before allegedly pulling the young child toward the ground and repeatedly stabbing her with a knife.
The alleged attack was captured on a nearby public transit station’s surveillance camera, NBC Chicago reports.
According to the Sun-Times, Gayden had allegedly threatened a salesperson inside a business shortly before the alleged attack on Hernandez Chacon. A group allegedly ran after Gayden and one person hit her, according to the Sun-Times.
Responding officers tried to stop Hernandez Chacon’s arterial bleeding before the ambulance arrived; she had reportedly suffered four stab wounds to the back, according to the Sun-Times. The New York Post reports that she was pronounced dead at a hospital.
The Associated Press reports that Gayden was charged with first-degree murder on Oct. 4.
The Chicago Sun-Times reports Gayden did not attend her hearing on Oct. 5 because she was hospitalized for a head injury. Her detention hearing is scheduled for Oct. 7.
Gayden has a history of other random attacks, according to the Sun-Times. In 2024 she pleaded guilty to a 2023 attack on a public transit employee and was arrested in November 2024 for allegedly attacking a worker at a shelter.
According to NBC Chicago, Gayden’s mother said she had been trying to get help for her daughter for years. WLS reports she said, “I am so sorry. I am so sorry for that family. The little baby didn’t deserve it. My daughter was not in her right mind.”
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