Man Stabbed In Uptown Dies

CHICAGO (CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM)  — The death of the man who died more than a week after he was stabbed March 31 in the Uptown neighborhood by another man who lives in the same building has been ruled a homicide.

Joshua Spencer, 31, of the 4600 block of N. Magnolia Ave., was pronounced dead at 4:17 p.m. Thursday at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. Spencer suffered neck wounds, according to the medical examiner’s office.

A Saturday autopsy revealed Spencer died from a stab wound to the neck and his death was ruled a homicide, the medical examiner’s office said.

The incident began about 7:10 p.m. March 31, when two men who know each other got into an argument in the 4600 block of North Magnolia Avenue. One man slashed the other in the neck with a knife, Town Hall District police Officer Anthony Lopez said.

Spencer was initially taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center in serious condition, police said.

Steven Riggs, 41, also of the 4600 block of N. Magnolia Ave. was charged early Friday, April 2, with one count of aggravated battery with a weapon, according to police. Riggs was booked into jail later the same day after being ordered held on a $500,000 bond, according to the Cook County Sheriff’s Web site.

The site says Riggs’ next court appearance is set for April 26 in North Felony Court, (Br. 42). It was not immediately known whether authorities were seeking to upgrade the charges.

Riggs was found inside the building where the two lived, and a knife was recovered, police said. Riggs reportedly has a history of mental illness and a police record for a stabbing as recently as December.

As several squad cars responded to the stabbing, a motorist driving a stolen car tried to drive past the crime scene but became blocked in, according to Lopez. The motorist smashed into several cars in an attempt to get away, a Town Hall District police officer said.

The motorist smashed into five police cars and six parked vehicles, News Affairs Officer Darryl Baety said. The stolen 1994 Pontiac Bonneville had a man in the driver’s seat and a woman in the passenger seat, according to the officer, who said both fled.

Police tried to stop the car but the motorist eventually “floored it,” pushing the squad cars out of the way and driving onto the sidewalk. One officer had to jump out of the way, causing that officer to suffer a wrenched back, Lopez said.

The car fled northbound on North Magnolia, Lopez said. No officers were in a position to pursue and the squad cars that were faced in the direction to pursue were badly damaged, Lopez said.

About 10 minutes after the car sped off, officers spotted it on a Lincoln Towing truck. It had been abandoned in an alley, Lopez said.

An officer on the scene said they saw children in the stolen car, but Lopez could not confirm the claim.

Belmont Area detectives are investigating.

Read the original article from WBBM News Radio.