Judge Denies Pretrial Release For Man Accused In Danny Golden Shooting

CHICAGO — 19th Ward residents breathed a collective sigh of relief when a Cook County judge ordered one of three men accused of shooting an off-duty Chicago police officer to remain in custody after he sought pretrial release.

Bryant Hayes, 22, is alleged to have handed a gun to an associate, who police said fired toward a crowd that had followed the three men following a skirmish outside a Beverly bar in July. CPD Officer Danny Golden, who was off-duty when he tried to break up the fight, was struck by gunfire that left him paralyzed. Hayes is facing assorted felony gun and attempted murder charges. He and his two associates are due back in court Dec. 12 for another pretrial hearing.

More than 150 residents packed the Judge Diana Kenworthy’s courtroom and jammed the hallway and lobby at the Leighton Criminal Court Building in a show of support for Golden and his family. The hearing, which was shown on Zoom, also exceeded the 300-person limit.

“The judge had a lot to say,” Ald. Matt O’Shea (19th). “There was a tremendous outpouring of relief in the courtroom and hallway. I, for one, was confident that the judge would deny pre-trial release, but you never know.”

O’Shea has been publicly clashing with Mayor Lori Lightfoot over the $9.4 billion city budget for 2023, which he said does not address hiring more police officers.

“I can’t vote for a budget that fails to address our city police officer hiring crisis,” O’Shea told WGN’s Lisa Dent. “We’re going to have another 1,000-plus officers walk out the door this year. We’re going to hire less than 700. That’s four straight years where twice as many are walking out than are coming in, and once again this budget fails to address that.”

O’Shea said he supported hiring and housing incentives for new hires as a way to attract more police officers, who are required to maintain residency in the city.

“Our city is in a public safety crisis. Since this mayor took office, crime is up 100 percent, murder is up 30 percent, theft is up 30 percent,” O’Shea said. “If we’re serious about trying to combat crime, we need more police officers. I can’t in good conscience representing my community support a budget that doesn’t address public safety.”