Stabbings, assaults roil Chicago’s Boystown

Chicago police have made an arrest in connection with a high-profile stabbing in the city’s Boystown neighborhood over the July 4 weekend.

The Cook County State’s Attorney’s office said analysis of a video shot by a witness resulted in an anonymous tip from someone who saw the video on YouTube. That led them to 24-year-old Darren Hayes, of Hammond, Ind., who was arrested for aggravated battery and ordered held in lieu of $700,000 bond.

Published reports indicate an anti-gay slur led to the confrontation.

Police said they’re still looking for several other people who can be seen on the video punching and kicking 26-year-old Rubin Robinson on the 3400 block of North Halsted Street on July 3. Robinson was treated at an area hospital and released a few days later.

Ongoing assaults in Boystown have led to the creation of the Facebook group “Take Back Boystown” and of a citizen patrol group called Boystown Dog Walkers Community Awareness Program.

A July 2 gathering in the 7-Eleven parking lot at Halsted Street and Roscoe, where there was a stabbing on June 18, tried to bring police and residents together to address the problem. But the event was interrupted with confrontations by protesters charging Halsted Street business owners and residents with racism.

For up-to-date coverage of the situation, go to gaychicagonews.com.

– Louis Weisberg