CHICAGO — Prosecutors have accused a woman of stabbing an off-duty Chicago police officer 13 times during a fight between patrons leaving a late-night bar on the Far North Side.
Stephanie Campbell-Ward, 34, was held in lieu of a $30,000 bail deposit by Judge Ankur Srivastava during a bond hearing on Sunday afternoon.
“Frankly, if I had the ability to do so, I would hold you without bail,” Srivastava advised Campbell-Ward.
On Saturday, Brandon Westbrook-Simmons, 32, and Dorothy Howard, 31, were charged with helping her attack the officer and his companion as they all left Mark II Lounge, a 4 o’clock bar at 7436 North Western, around closing time on Friday. But only Campbell-Ward is accused of stabbing the off-duty cop.
Before the altercation, Westbrook-Simmons approached a woman in the bar and tried to strike up a conversation, officials said. But the 36-year-old off-duty cop intervened, and the parties separated. The cop and the woman left, followed by the other three people. Prosecutors said an argument broke out along the way, and the off-duty officer and his companion tried to walk away, only to be attacked in the 2400 block of West Fargo.
During the fight, Westbrook-Simmons allegedly punched the off-duty officer several times in the face and body. While that was happening, Howard and Campbell-Ward attacked the woman who was with the cop, punching her and dragging her to the ground by her hair, prosecutors said. Once she was down, they allegedly punched and kicked her in the face and body until she became limp.
Eventually, the two women joined Westbrook-Simmons as he continued to attack the off-duty cop, according to prosecutors. Campbell-Ward pulled a knife from her bra and stabbed the officer repeatedly in his back and arm, causing him to bleed profusely and eventually lose three liters of blood, said Kyle, the prosecutor. A bystander recorded portions of the altercation on their phone.
The officer remains in critical condition at St. Francis Hospital. The woman he was with suffered severe bruising to the eye area and a cut lip.
Howard and Campbell-Ward took Westbrook-Simmons into a nearby building. Surveillance video showed Campbell-Ward dropping a knife and the cop’s ID on the floor, prosecutors said. They said she also put a wallet into her bra, noting that the officer’s wallet went missing during the attack. The police recovered the knife and arrested Westbrook-Simmons and Howard in the building.
Campbell-Ward was not immediately arrested, but she gave her personal information to police, and they arrested her Saturday, Kyle said.
Kyle said Campbell-Ward was convicted of robbery in Minnesota in 2012. She works two jobs and is a mother, her defense attorney told Judge Srivastava.
Before setting bond, Srivastava told Campbell-Ward that he was partly influenced by the allegation that the victims were walking away and the off-duty officer was stabbed in the back. If true, he said, that means the assault was not in self-defense.
Campbell-Ward is charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and aggravated battery causing great bodily harm. The other two are charged with aggravated battery causing great bodily harm.
Srivastava ordered Campbell-Ward to go on electronic monitoring if she posts bail.
On Saturday, Judge Charles Beach ordered Westbrook-Simmons to pay a $10,000 bail deposit to be released on an ankle monitor. He won’t be eligible for release until state officials review his parole status.
Howard appeared before Srivastava on Saturday. She must pay a $5,000 bail deposit.
