Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Marques Gaines' Death Outside River North 7-Eleven Ruled A Homicide

By  David Matthews Tanveer Ali and Kelly Bauer | April 29, 2016 5:38pm | Updated on May 2, 2016 8:51am

 Stills from a video show Marques Gaines before he was killed.
Stills From Marques Gaines Video
View Full Caption

RIVER NORTH — The death of Marques Gaines, a well-liked bartender who was knocked unconscious, robbed and left to die in a River North street on Super Bowl Sunday, has been ruled a homicide, county officials said Friday.

Gaines, 32, was outside a 7-Eleven store at 418 N. State St. early Feb. 7 when a man punched him and knocked him into the street, where he was then run over by a passing cab. Gaines' Atlanta-based family sued 7-Eleven, the store, taxi company, and driver last week, armed with surveillance video showing inattentive bystanders and a 7-Eleven security guard who stood inside the store immediately after Gaines was knocked unconscious and lay bleeding in the street outside.

RELATED: Bartender Was Ignored By Bystanders, Left To Die In Street, Lawsuit Says

Gaines' death was ruled a homicide by way of multiple blunt force trauma, assault, and being hit by a car, according to Cook County Medical Examiner. 

"There was this person attacking their customers in their threshold and [the guard] stood by and watched," said Christopher T. Hurley, the Chicago lawyer representing the Gaines family, last week. "After my client was knocked to the ground and knocked unconscious, he stood inside in a place of safety and watched him bleeding until he was run over by a cab."

Gaines had gone into the 7-Eleven to buy a bag of chips after a night out with co-workers, according to the lawsuit. Another man tried to go into the convenience store but was kicked out by a security guard. Afterward, the man and security guard yelled at each other outside.

The lawsuit says Gaines tried to leave by slipping between the two, but the man punched Gaines in the back of his head and then hit him a second time, knocking Gaines unconscious. The security guard saw the attack but went back inside the store and watched as two men robbed Gaines as he lay in the street. 

Afterward, a different 7-Eleven employee walked over to Gaines. He was joined by the security guard, and they watched as a cab driver ran over Gaines while the security guard was on the phone with 911, according to the lawsuit and Hurley.

After being hit by the car, Gaines was taken to Northwestern Hospital, where he was revived four times, according to the lawsuit. The fifth time Gaines "coded," or lost vital signs, doctors determined they couldn't save him and he died.

Tom Kalayil, the franchisee of the 7-Eleven store at 418 N. State St., said last week he "feels sorry" for Gaines and his family, but dismissed the notion that the store was responsible for his death. Kalayil said he believed the altercation between Gaines and his assailant stemmed from a bar next door to his store. 

"All I know is it was an incident outside the store, by the sidewalk on the street," Kalayil said. 

Gaines' death devastated his friends and colleagues, who said he was friendly and charismatic.

"There was just never a dull day with Marques — even on our bad days, he would find a way to make it fun," Rudy Coronel, who worked alongside Gaines at the Chicago Marriott Hotel on Michigan Avenue, told DNAinfo Chicago earlier. "He could get along with anybody, make anybody laugh. He was just that kind of guy, so full of life."

Drexina Nelson, Gaines' cousin, said last week that their family had "suffered tremendously." She hopes releasing the video of Gaines' death will help find his attacker and answer more questions surrounding his tragic passing. 

"How could people just walk by like nothing happened? This is a human. This is a person. What if it was your own family; how would you feel about that?" Nelson said. "What does it say for a person who robs a person that's down? That says a lot about where we are as people."

"This remains an active investigation and CPD detectives are following promising leads and taking into account the findings from the medical examiner," Frank Giancamilli, a Chicago police spokesman, said Saturday. Police are asking anyone with additional information to contact the Chicago Police Department, Giancamilli added.

RELATED: How Did Marques Gaines Die? Friends Push Police For Answers

For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here: