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Man Fired Into Group of People, Killing 23-Year-Old, Prosecutors Say

By Joe Ward | November 2, 2015 6:23am
 Robert Nathaniel, 24, has been charged with murder in the August shooting death of John Short.
Robert Nathaniel, 24, has been charged with murder in the August shooting death of John Short.
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COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE — A Washington Park man has been charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a Back of the Yards man in August, prosecutors said.

Robert Nathaniel, 25, of the 6000 block of South Indiana Avenue, is charged with first-degree murder for shooting and killing John Short, 23, in an Aug. 26 Back of the Yards shooting, prosecutors said.

Nathaniel shot at a group of people who had witnessed him get into a confrontation inside a store in the 1100 block of West 51st Street in Back of the Yards, prosecutors said at Nathaniel's bond hearing Sunday.

Nathaniel followed two witnesses to his confrontation out of the store and into a nearby alley, where he fired a single shot at the witnesses, prosecutors said.

The witnesses then told nearby residents of the incident, and the group walked back toward the store to see what had happened. Nathaniel then shot at the group, striking and killing Short, of the 1000 block of West 51st Street, prosecutors said.

Nathaniel was captured on security cameras getting a gun from a car, according to prosecutors. He was arrested and charged on Oct. 30, according to Cook County records.

With the video footage and a number of witnesses, Cook County Judge James Brown asked prosecutors why it took so long to arrest and charge Nathaniel. It took police a long time to get witness testimonies, according to a Cook County assistant state's attorney.

Brown ordered Nathaniel held in lieu of $1 million bail.

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