'Black Lives Don't Matter'-Spewing Man Charged With Hate Crime: Prosecutor

TINLEY PARK, IL -- A Tinley Park man charged with a hate crime hid his face in his hands and cried out, “oh my gosh, I can’t pay that,” when a judge set bail at $100,000 Friday afternoon during a bond hearing.

Elkanah Asher IV, 29, who is also a registered sex predator, was arrested when he spewed racial slurs at an African- American woman earlier this month, the prosecutor said.

The woman, who is a student at a Tinley Park beauty school in the 15900 block of South Harlem Avenue, went out for a cigarette break around 2:22 p.m. July 28, when she was approached by Asher and a male acquaintance.

The prosecutor said Asher began yelling at the woman “white power,” “black lives don’t matter,” and “you n---ers need to go back to Africa.”

After he finished yelling the racial slurs, he threw a can of Ice House beer at the woman, which landed about four feet away from her. She grew alarmed and called police, the prosecutor said.

Police arrested Asher at his residence. His friend told police that Asher made the racist statements.

Asher currently has a pending DUI out of Iroquois County. He has a conviction for aggravated criminal sexual abuse with a 13-year-old victim from 2008, according to the Illinois Sex Offender Registry.

Court records also indicate that Asher pleaded guilty to a phone harassment charge from last December, when he repeatedly called a nurse and showed up during the nurse's shift in an emergency room at a south suburban hospital.

The assistant public defender told the judge that Asher is unemployed but plans to start welding classes in the fall. He asked the judge for a reasonable bond.

Judge Kennedy set bail at $100,000. Asher’s next court date is Aug. 25 in Bridgeview.

Elkanah Asher IV, 29 | Cook County Sheriff