A 43-year-old registered sexual predator was denied bail Thursday on charges he shot a transgender woman and killed her brother last month after telling them to get off his block.
Kortney Darby, of Humboldt Park, faces charges of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder in the shooting, which happened about 2 a.m. Aug. 3 in the 4600 block of West Monroe Street.
The woman, 29, works as a prostitute and is often accompanied by Johnny Parris, 23, for protection, Cook County prosecutors said in court Thursday.
On the night of the shooting, she was leaning on the hood of their car when Darby allegedly drove by in a silver Dodge pickup and nearly struck her.
He stopped the truck near the woman and shouted. “Get the f—- off my block,” prosecutors said. The woman and Parris yelled back at Darby as he drove off but did not threaten him.
Darby pulled out a 9 mm handgun, firing it at the two, prosecutors said. Parris tried to run but was hit in his side and collapsed.
The woman got back into her car as the bullets continued to fly and crawled into the back seat as Darby circled the car and continued firing, prosecutors said.
The woman was struck in the thigh before Darby drove away, authorities said. She and a trauma nurse who was in the area tried to help Parris before paramedics arrived; he was later pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital. The woman was also hospitalized for her gunshot wound, prosecutors said.
Detectives recovered nine shell casings at the scene and police POD camera footage of Darby’s vehicle, which matched a silver Dodge pickup registered to Darby that had a matching reflective strip near the truck’s running board, prosecutors said.
An officer identified the car when an image of it was released internally to the police department and the woman later identified Darby as the shooter in a photo array, prosecutors said.
Darby is a registered sexual predator for a 2000 conviction for kidnapping and sexual assault involving an 18-year-old victim, according to public records. He was convicted of kidnapping a second time in 2002 and also has previous convictions for aggravated battery and unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, prosecutors said.
Joshua Kutnick, a private defense attorney for Darby, said Darby is a single father to a teenage boy but also has five other children, three of whom are adults. He previously owned his own auto transport company but had most recently been working in construction.
Darby’s brother, Keith Darby, attended the hearing Thursday and said he had never heard his brother express anger toward transgender people.
“There’s a bunch of Dodge [pickup] trucks out there that’s the same color,” Keith Darby said. ‘I think it’s mistaken identity.
“He’s been working, he has custody of his son. ... I don’t understand this. He’s a great dad,” Keith Darby added.
Judge Charles Beach II noted Darby’s significant criminal history and the identification by the woman in his decision to deny bail. Darby’s next hearing was set for Sept. 24.
