This week in the Washington Heights and Fernwood neighborhoods of Chicago, a man allegedly went on a raping streak which may eventually include not only charges of rape, but charges for burglary and other felony crimes. The early morning sexual assaults have shocked the neighborhoods in which they were perpetrated, and perhaps put an entire city on alert.
According to the Chicago Tribune, the first sexual assault occurred around 4:00AM, when the man, who has yet to be named, broke into and entered a home in Fernwood by propping a garbage can up against the home and crawling through a window. The man entered the room of a 40-year-old woman and held her at knifepoint. The man asked the woman if there were any other people in the house, and the woman indicated that only her daughter was there. The man had the woman call her 22-year-old daughter to the room, where he then proceeded to sexually assault both of them. The man indicated that if the 22-year-old did not comply, he would kill her mother with the knife. After he was finished sexually assaulting the women, the man left the house, taking with him the women’s cell phones, credit cards, and money. The man told the women that he would kill them if they reported the attack, but they later went to a neighbor’s home and called the police. The 40-year-old woman suffered a knife wound to her hand during the assault.
The man proceeded to enter another home where a young girl was sleeping. The father of the young girl saw the man and chased him, and he fled the scene. The father called the police and the girl was not injured.
The last attack occurred in the backyard of a Washington Heights resident. A man looked out of his home and saw a 14-year-old girl being sexually assaulted by allegedly the same man. The resident shouted from his window for the attacker to stop, and then his mother grabbed a scooter and wielded it like a baseball bat and ran to the attacker. The attacker fled the scene, and the young girl was helped into the resident’s home. The young girl was apparently raped at knifepoint by the man.
The charges that the so far unnamed man likely faces for the crimes in this case will likely be severe. Under Illinois law 720 ILCS 5/19-1, burglary, a crime that is committed by entering a building with the intent to commit a felony or theft, is Class 2 Felony, punishable by jail time and other penalties and consequences. Under Illinois criminal laws governing sex crimes, criminal sexual assault and aggravated criminal assault, both which may be applicable here due to the young age of one of the victims and the use of the knife, are Class 1 and Class X felonies, respectively, and are punishable by very lengthy jail terms, including natural life in some circumstances.
If you have been charged with violating Illinois criminal laws, your first line of defense should be to get in touch with an experienced criminal attorney. Contact Goldman & Associates today for a confidential consultation.
