Chicago man charged with murder in beating death of 1-year-old boy

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Chicago authorities have charged a 23-year-old man with murder in connection with the beating death of a toddler earlier this week on the city’s South Side.

Michael Robinson allegedly pummeled the 23-month-old boy just after noon on the 4200 block of South Calumet Avenue Tuesday, punching him multiple times in the face, police said.

Antwun Gayden, the victim, was pronounced dead at Comer Children’s Hospital a half hour after the incident.

Michael Robinson allegedly pummeled the 23-month-old boy just after noon on the 4200 block of South Calumet Avenue Tuesday, punching him multiple times in the face, police said. (Courtesy Chicago Police)

Chicago police had previously described the attack as a domestic incident and said Robinson suffered from mental illness. He was taken into custody at the scene, but charges were not immediately announced.

Now, Robinson faces a count of first-degree murder. He’s due in court Friday.

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Robinson and Antwun are related, according to WGN 9.

The Chicago Sun-Times reported that the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services had had no prior contact with Antwun’s family but was opening an investigation.

Just a few blocks up South Calumet Avenue, authorities found a second child dead on Tuesday in an unrelated case, the outlet reported.

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That victim, Jessieonna Evans, fell asleep and did not wake up, according to the report. The results of the autopsy were pending.

Chicago has seen a surge in violence in recent weeks, including the deaths of multiple children, prompting Mayor Lori Lightfoot to appeal to city residents for peace.

“Thoughts and prayers are simply not enough at this point,” she said Monday in response to the death of a 7-year-old girl named Natalia Wallace, who was shot and killed while playing outside her grandmother’s house on Independence Day. “Sorrow itself is not enough. What it says is we need to do better as a city.”

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There were at least 17 people killed by gunfire over the Fourth of July holiday weekend alone, including multiple children. Another 70 were wounded.