Cornelius German | Homicide Watch Chicago

UPDATE: Kevin Culverson wanted revenge for stolen property when he killed teen, prosecutors say

Michael Lansu — Thu, 31 Oct 2013 16:21:25 -0500

Kevin Culverson / Photo from Chicago Police

BY RUMMANA HUSSAIN
Chicago Sun-Times

Kevin Culverson was bent on getting revenge on those who allegedly stole his property and confronted him about selling marijuana in his South Side neighborhood, prosecutors said.

But when he opened fire just blocks from President Barack Obama’s Chicago home on April 22, Culverson didn’t kill anyone he believed robbed and harassed him, authorities said.

Instead, Culverson gunned down 15-year-old Cornelius “Cornbread” German, who had nothing to do with the previous altercation, Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney Joe Crocker said Thursday.

Cornelius had left a backyard dice game with friends in the 5000 block of South Evans Avenue when he was gunned down, Crocker said.

Cornelius was making his way through a gangway to the front of the home to eventually meet his parents, who were on their way to pick him up.

But Culverson, who was in a nearby backyard, allegedly reached through a fence and shot Cornelius in the back.

Cornelius tried running away but he collapsed in a nearby lot, Crocker said.

Several witnesses said they saw 21-year-old Culverson in the adjacent backyard before the shooting and saw him running away after, Crocker said.

Shortly after the murder, Cornelius’ mother told the Chicago Sun-Times she knew something was wrong when she didn’t see the boy waiting at a Walgreens at the corner of 51st Street and Cottage Grove Avenue as planned.

“I had this sinking gut feeling something wasn’t right,” 42-year-old Timika Rutledge said. “I saw a police officer. He said a little kid got shot. Somehow, I knew it was my baby. I went back there. I saw my baby on the ground in the grass. I saw his gym shoes and his jacket.”

Cornelius, of the 1000 block of West 51st Street, was pronounced dead at the scene.

On Thursday, Judge Donald Panarese Jr. ordered Culverson, of the 700 block of East 50th Place, held in lieu of $1.5 million bond.

However, Culverson, who goes by the street name “Big Moe,” is already in custody with the Illinois Department of Corrections for a manufacturing and delivering cannabis near a school conviction from last summer.

He was originally sentenced to boot camp for the drug charge but had that sentenced revoked and was sent to prison for a year, Crocker said.

Culverson also has a 2011 possession of a stolen motor vehicle conviction.

Kevin Culverson charged with killing Cornelius German, 15, blocks from President Obama's home

Michael Lansu — Wed, 30 Oct 2013 09:30:26 -0500

Kevin Culverson / Photo from Chicago Police

Kevin Culverson has been charged with allegedly killing 15-year-old Cornelius “Cornbread” German during a dice game blocks from President Barack Obama’s Chicago home in April.

Culverson, 20, of the 700 block of East 50th Place, was charged with first-degree murder for allegedly firing a handgun into a crowd of people about 9:40 p.m. April 22, Chicago Police announced early Wednesday.

Cornelius had been playing dice with friends in the backyard of a home in the 5000 block of South Evans Avenue when he was fatally shot in the back, police and family said at the time.

The boy’s parents were en route to pick him up as shots rang out, family members told the Chicago Sun-Times.

When Cornelius was not waiting at a Walgreens at the corner of 51st Street and Cottage Grove Avenue as planned, annoyance shifted to apprehension -- and eventually to grief, as police cars streamed into the area.

“I had this sinking gut feeling something wasn’t right,” said the boy’s mother, 42-year-old Timika Rutledge. “I saw a police officer. He said a little kid got shot. Somehow, I knew it was my baby. I went back there. I saw my baby on the ground in the grass. I saw his gym shoes and his jacket.”

Cornelius, of the 1000 block of West 51st Street, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The boy’s friends later told Rutledge that Cornelius was leaving the dice game in the backyard when he was shot and that he wasn’t the intended target, an account police could not confirm.

Culverson was scheduled to appear in bond court on Wednesday.

-- Sun-Times Media Wire

Comment of the Day: "We, as adults, are responsible for all our children."

John Carpenter — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:58:33 -0500

Margaret Washington writes:

"Cornelius German was a 15 year old teenager with a big heart, and was always telling jokes that would leave everyone laughing. I know that our children make mistakes and even decisions that my cause them to become apart of society - lifestyle, and just living in the moment. It doesn't matter what color or race a child is when their life is taken. At the end of the day or night, the child who lost his or her life is still someone's child. Remember we as adults are responsible for all children. We must fight to save our kids from the Gangs, drugs, and crime. Cornelius loved his mom and dad, knowing that he made his last request to his friend, was "call my mama". This time his parent couldn't save their son.

To the entire German family my prayers are with your family."

Slain 15-year-old's last words were: 'Call my mama.'

John Carpenter — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:59:04 -0500

BY BRIAN SLODYSKO

Staff Reporter

Last Modified: Apr 23, 2013 03:29PM

Timika Rutledge’s Monday night unfolded as a mother’s worst nightmare.

When her youngest son was not waiting at a Walgreens at the corner of 51st and Cottage Grove as planned, annoyance shifted to apprehension — and eventually to grief, as police cars streamed into the area.

“I had this sinking gut feeling something wasn’t right,” said Rutledge, 42, as tears welled in her eyes. “I saw a police officer. He said a little kid got shot. Somehow, I knew it was my baby. I went back there. I saw my baby on the ground in the grass. I saw his gym shoes and his jacket.”

She couldn’t bring herself to go any closer.

Her son, 15-year-old Cornelius German, was lying dead nearby — shot only four blocks from President Barack Obama’s home in the 5000 block of South Greenwood.

His mother said she was told her son’s last words were, “Call my mama.”

Obama and his wife, Michelle, responded to the shooting, according to the White House, saying they were “saddened” that another young victim fell to gun violence in their hometown. The president added that he “remained committed” to getting gun control laws through Congress, a spokesman said.

In the teen’s killing, police say the youth, nicknamed “Cornbread,” was shot in the back around 9:40 p.m. Monday in the backyard of a home in the 5000 block of South Evans. Cornelius, of the 1000 of West 51st Street, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Cornelius had been with friends Monday night and called Rutledge and his father, Ronald German, to pick him at 51st and Cottage Grove. When they didn’t see Cornelius, they tried to call him on the phone.

That’s when the police cars arrived, and a bystander told Rutledge that “Cornbread” — the youngest of her four children — had been shot.

Friends told Rutledge her son was leaving a dice game in the backyard when he was shot and that he wasn’t the intended target, an account police could not immediately confirm.

No arrests had been made as of Tuesday morning. Police don’t have suspect.

Police said Cornelius was affiliated with a gang, which family members deny, though they acknowledge he ran with an older, rougher crowd who were probably involved with gangs.

“He didn’t have no gang tattoos. He didn’t have no piercings,” Rutledge said.

To his family, the Kenwood Academy freshman was a charismatic, wise-cracking teen who could brighten even the most glum moods.

“Even if you were down, he was going to crack jokes,” said Kameisha Andrews, an aunt. “He was always a comedian.”

Andrews, who lives in an apartment around the corner from the Obamas’, said she ran to the scene of the shooting after family called with news Cornelius was shot.

She last saw him alive Friday, when he showed up at her house craving junk food.

“He came up in here and said, ‘I know you got some cookies,’” Andrews said.

By the time he left he’d had much more — a meal of catfish nuggets, macaroni and cheese and cookies, with a glass of Kool-Aid, she said.

“It’s just sad another 15-year-old boy is dead, my nephew,” Andrews said. “It didn’t even happen far from his home. He was doing what teenagers do. Just kicking it with friends.”

After authorities removed Cornelius’ body late Monday, Rutledge returned home near 51st and Morgan. But instead of crawling in bed with her husband, she said she went to Cornelius’ bedroom. She pulled one of the boy’s sweatshirts tight to smell his scent and comfort herself.

But she couldn’t sleep.

“The one thing I’ll never forget is him laying there on that ground for three hours, and all I can see was his shoes,” Rutledge said.

Contributing: Lynn Sweet

Slain teen was cheerful, friendly boy, says aunt

John Carpenter — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 11:22:09 -0500

DNAinfo reports that Cornelius German, shot and killed about a mile from President Obama's South Side home, was a cheerful boy, according to his aunt. Read their story here.