BY KENNY NGUYEN
Homicide Watch Chicago
Joseph Kaman dreamed of finishing college, and the homeless man spent much of his time studying at the Jefferson Park Library, family said.
Last month, three other vagrants beat and strangled the 45-year-old Kaman to death in the 4800 block of North Lipps Avenue because one of the attackers thought Kaman stole a cell phone, prosecutors said.
“Joseph was a very vibrant individual,” said his niece, Michelle Rhodes. “He was willing to do anything for anybody … he wouldn’t hurt a fly.”
Rhodes said Kaman suffered from learning disabilities that limited his reading and math skills, but that didn’t stop him from spending countless hours reading college textbooks at the library.
“I remember him telling me how he was studying up so he could get back to college — and you could see how excited it made him,” said friend Steve Weitzner. “He mentioned something about studying literature at Wright College, but I’m not to sure what he wanted to pursue in school.”
When Kaman wasn’t studying at the library he enjoyed crafts, soft rock music and Hungarian food, said his sister, Theresa Rhodes.
“He was always making something,” Holly Rhodes said. “He made me a white beaded necklace. He made my sister a dream catcher necklace — that necklace is currently hanging up in my sister’s car.”
Joseph Kaman / Family photo
Kaman also enjoyed cleaning, Theresa Rhodes said.
“Joseph was a cleaning fanatic,” she said. “We called him the cleaning b–- and he would just smile.”
Relatives described Kaman as a generous, hard-working person who previously worked a maintenance job for Touhy Mobile Home Park, family said.
“He was always helping other people,” Holly Rhodes said. “If someone needed help, he would give his last to that person. He would give his only sweater or his last cigarette. He had a heart and soul.”
Family said Kaman and his wife, Holly, lived with a relative for a while, but his wife and family eventually moved to Florida.
“Joseph was a good kid at heart,” said his sister, Theresa Rhodes. “Yeah we had our arguments, but what brother and sister doesn’t?”
Kaman briefly stayed at a Salvation Army, but left a short time later, family said.
On Oct. 14, Jake Tate, 27, Daniel Morris, 20, and Todd Cooper, 27, strangled, beat and sodomized Kaman after Tate accused Kamen of stealing his mobile phone, Assistant State’s Attorney Colleen Rogers said.
The group then threw Kaman’s body into a garbage bin, where he was found by a janitor for Northwestern Business College, authorities said.
The three men were charged with first-degree murder and Judge Maria Kuriakos Ciesil ordered them held in lieu of $2 million bond.
“I’m very happy that they’re off the streets, they deserved what they got,” Holly Rhodes said. “ I could learn to forgiv,e but won’t forget … It’s so emotional.
“We had a rough life. We were homeless in Jefferson Park and would hang out by the 7-Eleven. We would ride the trains all night long to keep warm. We never had a problem with anyone. Joseph was magnetic to people. He had a heart of gold and he will always be loved by everyone.”