A man who carjacked and brutally beat a well-known Chinatown chef in 2022, leaving him with permanent injuries, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. Termaine Patterson, 22, received the sentence from Judge Timothy Joyce for the April 7, 2022, attack on Jin Lew, who was then 61 years old.
The case drew widespread attention at the time because of the severity of Lew’s injuries and his standing in the Chinatown community.
Prosecutors said Patterson and an accomplice had already carjacked another driver earlier that day. They drove the stolen vehicle to the 2500 block of South Princeton Avenue and began following Lew’s car.
According to prosecutors, Patterson and two accomplices eventually forced Lew out of his vehicle and beat him with their fists and feet in the street, leaving him unconscious on the roadway. A streetsweeper later found Lew lying in the street. He was taken to a hospital, where he remained unidentified for several days and spent about a month in a coma. Officials said after the attack that his injuries were so severe he would likely require 24-hour care for the rest of his life.
Prosecutors said Patterson went through Lew’s pockets, took his keys, and drove off in the chef’s car.
Later that same day, Patterson used Lew’s credit card at a gas station and at Riverside Mall, prosecutors said. The first transaction was captured on surveillance video, and mall security footage showed Patterson parking Lew’s vehicle before making another purchase. Detectives also recovered Patterson’s palm print from inside the stolen car after it was found, according to prosecutors.
Last summer, Patterson opted for a bench trial, putting his case in the hands of Judge Timothy Joyce rather than a jury. Court records show the judge found him guilty of 10 of the 11 counts he faced, acquitting him only of attempted murder.
Following several post-trial hearings, Joyce has now imposed a 20-year prison sentence.
At the time of the attack, Patterson was awaiting trial on a pending stolen motor vehicle charge. During his recent sentencing hearing, prosecutors dropped that case as well as a carjacking charge he faced for the hijacking carried out shortly before Lew was targeted.
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