Man convicted in Northerly Island stabbing sentenced to 3 years

A Humboldt Park man convicted of stabbing a concert-goer who confronted him at a Northerly Island punk rock show was sentenced to three years in prison Monday.

Thomas Christensen was found guilty of aggravated battery in August following a bench trial before Cook County Judge William Hooks.

At the time, Hooks chastised the former pre-school teacher and employee of a real estate business for escalating a “sophomoric” argument with the 31-year-old victim during a Dropkick Murphys concert in 2017.

The victim testified in August that Christensen slashed at him with a knife, cutting his face and neck and breaking his jaw. The altercation began when the victim, who worked as a bouncer at bars in the city, confronted Christensen, whom he claimed had been barred from several venues for his purported ties to racist groups.

Christensen’s pre-trial hearings attracted crowds of protesters from anti-fascist groups.

Christensen’s lawyer, Steven Fine, has declined to comment on Christensen’s views on race.

Christensen was photographed in April with members of the Proud Boys and other white nationalist groups outside State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s downtown offices at a protest organized by the Fraternal Order of Police.

The day Hooks found 36-year-old Christensen guilty, Nick Stiso, a Proud Boys member and friend, told a Chicago Sun-Times reporter that Christensen was a member, but said that the organization was “pro-American” not a white supremacist group.