2017 Chicago torture incident
LocationChicago, Illinois
DateJanuary 3, 2017 (2017-01-03)
Attack type
Torture, kidnapping, stabbing, beating, hate crime
WeaponsKnife
VictimUnnamed white male
Perpetrators
  • Jordan Hill
  • Tesfaye Cooper
  • Brittany Covington
  • Tanishia Covington
MotiveRacism, ableism, ransom
VerdictPleaded guilty
ConvictionsBrittany and Tanisha Covington:

Hill and Cooper:

SentenceHill:
8 years in prison
Cooper:
7 years in prison
Tanishia:
3 years in prison
Brittany:
4 years probation and 200 hours of community service

In January 2017, four perpetrators: Jordan Hill, Tesfaye "Teefies" Cooper, and Brittany and Tanishia Covington committed a hate crime and other offenses against a white mentally disabled man in Chicago, Illinois. The attackers, two black men and two black women, laughed as they kidnapped and physically, verbally, and racially abused the victim. The incident was livestreamed on Facebook.

The victim met with an acquaintance from high school at a McDonald's on New Year's Eve, and on January 3 was found by a police officer to appear to be suffering from numerous injuries while being led by one of the perpetrators on a sidewalk. The four perpetrators were arrested after the incident was livestreamed by one of them on Facebook Live, and were all given plea deals for hate crime charges and other offenses. The sentences ranged from probation to 8 years in prison.

Kidnapping and torture

On December 31, 2016, the victim, an 18-year-old mentally-disabled white male,[1][2] was dropped off by his parents at a McDonald's in suburban Streamwood, Illinois, where the victim wanted to meet Jordan Hill, one of the perpetrators. The victim knew Hill before the incident, as the two had attended the same school in Aurora, Illinois, and considered him a friend. On January 2, 2017, the victim's parents filed a report that he was missing.[3]

According to police reports, Hill had stolen a van, which he passed off as his own when he picked up the victim on December 31. Hill had the victim sleep in the van while he spent three nights visiting friends on the West Side of Chicago. On January 3, Hill and Tesfaye Cooper drove the victim to the apartment of sisters Brittany and Tanishia Covington, where the four tied up and tortured the victim for hours.[3]

Brittany, the younger of the two Covington sisters, began a Facebook Live stream, broadcasting the attackers laughing as they bound, gagged, beat, and taunted the victim, cut out part of his scalp with a knife, made him kiss the floor, and forced him to drink from a toilet. [3][4][1] They screamed "Fuck white people" and forced the victim to repeat them in shouting "Fuck Trump".[1][5] One of the perpetrators contacted the victim's mother and demanded a $300 ransom for the victim's return.[6] The Facebook Live stream captured only 28 minutes of what was an hours-long attack. Police suspected that the perpetrators stopped and left the apartment when downstairs neighbors complained about noise levels.[3]

On January 3, at approximately 5:15 p.m., Harrison District Officer Michael Donnelly saw the victim walking with the perpetrator Hill. The victim was observed by Officer Donnelly to be wearing summer clothing during winter conditions. Police said the victim appeared "injured" and "confused". Donnelly later stated, "I observed him wearing a tank top, inside-out, backwards, jean shorts and sandals on...He was bloodied. He was battered. He was very discombobulated."[3] Running the victim's name through police databases, Officer Donnelly discovered that the victim was reported as a missing person and brought him to the hospital.[3]

Four perpetrators were arrested and charged with aggravated kidnapping, aggravated unlawful restraint, aggravated battery, and hate crime: Jordan Hill and Tesfaye Cooper, two 18-year-old males, as well as sisters Brittany Covington (18 years old) and Tanishia Covington (24 years old).[1][7][8][9][10][11]

On February 10, 2017, all four perpetrators pleaded not guilty at their arraignment.[12] On May 16, 2017, a judge set bail for the four individuals: $900,000 for Hill; $800,000 for Cooper; $500,000 for Brittany Covington; and $200,000 for Tanishia Covington.[13] None of the four defendants were able to post bail.[14]

On December 8, 2017, Brittany Covington pleaded guilty to the charges of committing a hate crime, intimidation and aggravated battery. Additional charges, such as kidnapping, were dropped as part of her plea deal. Covington was sentenced to four years of probation and 200 hours of community service. Cook County Circuit Judge William Hooks said that he could have sentenced her to prison, but stated "I'm not sure if I did that you'd be coming out any better."[15][16]

On April 19, 2018, Tanishia Covington pleaded guilty to the charges of committing a hate crime, intimidation and aggravated battery and was sentenced to three years in prison.[17]

On July 5, 2018, Jordan Hill pleaded guilty to the charges of aggravated kidnapping and committing a hate crime and was sentenced to eight years in prison.[18][19]

On July 12, 2018, Tesfaye Cooper pleaded guilty to a hate crime and aggravated kidnapping.[20] Cooper was sentenced to seven years in prison.[21]

Aftermath and reactions

The live stream was later deleted, but archives still exist.[1] There was widespread outrage over the beating.[22] In its aftermath, the hashtag #BLMKidnapping was trending on Twitter, implying a connection with the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.[22] None of the attackers specifically mentioned Black Lives Matter in the video and the police found there to be no connection.[23] Representatives for Black Lives Matter's Chicago branch denounced the beating and stated that they were uninvolved, and police stated that they found no evidence that Black Lives Matter was the motive of the incident.[23] Some media pundits, such as Glenn Beck, suggested that the rhetoric of Black Lives Matter and its supporters had encouraged the attackers, while other commentators disputed this claim.[22][24]

At the time, President Barack Obama released a statement condemning the incident, saying, "What we have seen as surfacing, I think, are a lot of problems that have been there a long time... Whether it's tensions between police and communities, (or) hate crimes of the despicable sort that has just now recently surfaced on Facebook."[3][25] Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said, "Anyone who has seen it [finds the video] both sickening and sickened by it," while Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner and his wife Diana said that they were "deeply saddened and disturbed by the horrific violence" depicted in the live stream.[26]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Domonoske, Camila (2017-01-05). "4 Charged With Hate Crimes Over Beating Live-Streamed On Facebook". NPR.org. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
  2. ↑ Levin, Sam; Jamieson, Amber (2017-01-05). "Four suspects charged with hate crimes over beating in Facebook Live video". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Meisner, Jason; Lee, William; Schmadeke, Steve (2017-01-05). "Brutal Facebook Live attack brings hate-crime charges, condemnation from White House". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
  4. ↑ "Four charged with hate crime for Chicago Facebook Live attack". BBC News. 2017-01-05. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  5. ↑ What makes a crime a 'hate crime'? And would the Chicago attack qualify?, Washington Post, January 5, 2017
  6. ↑ Yan, Holly; Ellis, Ralph; Shoichet, Catherine E. (2017-01-06). "Chicago torture video: No bail for 4 suspects". CNN. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  7. ↑ "Four Charged With Hate Crime For Videotaped Torture Of Teen". CBS Chicago. 2017-01-05. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  8. ↑ "Hate Crime, Kidnapping Charges Filed Against 4 In Facebook Live Torture Case". Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  9. ↑ Smith, Mitch; Davey, Monica (2017-01-05). "4 Black Suspects Charged in Videotaped Beating of White Teenager in Chicago". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 24 April 2023. Retrieved 2017-01-06.
  10. ↑ Grinberg, Emanuella (2017-01-05). "Chicago torture: Facebook Live video leads to 4 arrests". CNN. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  11. ↑ Berman, Mark; Hawkins, Derek (2017-01-05). "Hate crime charges filed after 'reprehensible' video shows attack on mentally ill man in Chicago". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 17 March 2023. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
  12. ↑ Narayan, Chandrika (2017-02-10). "Four charged in Facebook Live torture case plead not guilty". CNN. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  13. ↑ "$900K Bail for Man Charged in Facebook Live Torture Case". NBC Chicago. 2017-05-17. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  14. ↑ Demarest, Erica (May 17, 2017). "Facebook Live Torture Suspects Still In Jail Despite Bail Reductions". DNAinfo Chicago. Archived from the original on 2017-08-05. Retrieved 2017-08-04.
  15. ↑ Crepeau, Megan (December 8, 2017). "Woman pleads guilty to hate crime in beating of disabled teen live on Facebook". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2017-12-09. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  16. ↑ Grimm, Andy (2017-12-09). "Woman gets probation in Facebook hate-crime case". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  17. ↑ Crepeau, Megan (April 20, 2018). "Woman given prison for role in streaming live on Facebook a beating of teen with disabilities". Chicago Tribune.
  18. ↑ Andone, Dakin; Baldacci, Marlena (July 6, 2018). "Man sentenced to 8 years in beating of disabled teen streamed on Facebook Live". CNN. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  19. ↑ "Man sentenced for hate crime in live-streamed beating of mentally disabled teen". CBS NEWS. July 6, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  20. ↑ "Final defendant in videotaped beating case pleads guilty". The Seattle Times. 2018-07-12. Archived from the original on 12 July 2018. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
  21. ↑ "Fourth suspect sentenced in live-streamed beating of disabled teen". CBS News.
  22. 1 2 3 Yan, Holly; Zdanowicz, Christina (2017-01-05). "Police: No link between Chicago torture video and Black Lives Matter". CNN. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
  23. 1 2 Bauer, Kelly (2017-01-05). "'Ridiculous' To Blame Torture Video On Black Lives Matter, Activist Says". DNAinfo Chicago. Archived from the original on 2017-02-02. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
  24. ↑ "Glenn Beck Blames Black Lives Matter for Chicago Torture Video". The Daily Beast. 2017-01-05. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
  25. ↑ "Obama: Chicago live-stream hate crime is 'despicable'". BBC News. 6 January 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
  26. ↑ Main, Frank; Charles, Sam; Grimm, Andy (2017-01-04). "4 face hate crime charges in videotaped attack". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
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