Jerrell Dorsey, 26, was charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of aggravated battery with a firearm.
Reporting Nancy Harty
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Updated 7/1/12 at 3:02 p.m.
CHICAGO (CBS) – A 26-year-old gang member is being held without bond after being charged with the fatal shooting of 7-year-old Heaven Sutton.
Jerrell Dorsey, of the 1600 block of North Laramie Avenue, was charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of aggravated battery with a firearm, according to police News Affairs.
Judge Adam D. Bourgeois denied Dorsey bond during a brief hearing Sunday.
The young girl was murdered after two men approached a group of people in the 1700 block of North Luna about 10:40 p.m. on Wednesday and opened fired, police said. A 19-year-old man also was shot, suffering a gunshot wound to his ankle.
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Supt. Garry McCarthy announced the latest development in the case Saturday during a community meeting in the Chatham neighborhood. The crowd applauded at the news.
“We’ve got some work to do to get him charged, but at this point, we believe that we have the right person in custody,” McCarthy said.
The girl’s mother, Ashake Banks, praised police but said other offenders responsible in her daughter’s death are still at large.
“Maybe I can get a little rest tonight. It’s just a start,” she told reporters near the site of her daughter’s shooting.
Paramedics took Heaven in critical condition to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where she was pronounced dead at 11:16 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office.
On Saturday afternoon Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office released a statement, in which the mayor said, “I want to thank the Austin community for working with the Chicago Police Department to provide leads in the shooting death of seven-year-old Heaven Stutton. No parent should have to endure this type of pain. Bringing Heaven’s shooter to justice will not bring her back, but I hope it will provide some level of solace to her family. We cannot lose another innocent child to violence and I will continue to fight to make sure the Chicago Police has the resources it needs to stop the violence.”
The girl’s family is accepting donations for Heaven’s funeral expenses. Donations can be made to the Heaven On Earth Fund at any U.S. Bank location.
Contributing: Sun-Times Media Wire (© Sun-Times Media Wire Chicago Sun-Times 2012. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
