Andrew Dehart

Andrew Dehart, a 33-year-old Caucasian man known affectionately to his family and friends as "Maine," was a man of many talents with a warm and engaging spirit. Those who loved him remember his outgoing, loving, and caring personality. A lifelong Chicago resident, Andrew was a graduate of Howland School of the Arts, Frazier Preparatory Academy, and Collins Academy High School. He applied his skills as a cook at McCormick Place, Chicago's premier convention center, and also nurtured a passion for music, expressing his creativity as a musician. His life was a source of joy and pride for his family, with his brother fondly remembering him as "The best lil/big brother." His sudden death left a void in the hearts of all who knew him.

The first weekend of autumn in 2017 was marked by a severe outbreak of gun violence across Chicago. In the early morning hours of Sunday, September 24, this violence reached Andrew’s doorstep in the North Lawndale neighborhood on the city's West Side. At approximately 1:57 a.m., Chicago Police officers were dispatched to the 1500 block of South Trumbull Avenue after receiving a report of a person shot. When they arrived, they found Andrew lying face down in the street. He had been shot in the face. Tragically, the place where he was gunned down was on the very same block where he lived.

First responders acted quickly, transporting Andrew to Mount Sinai Hospital. Despite their efforts, the severity of his injury was overwhelming. At 2:30 a.m., less than an hour after he was found, Andrew Dehart was pronounced dead by the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office. His killing was part of a brutal weekend that saw at least two people fatally shot and nearly 30 others wounded throughout the city. By that point in September 2017, Chicago had already recorded more than 500 homicides, a grim statistic that underscored the violent reality the city was facing.

The Chicago Police Department's Area Central detectives were assigned to lead the homicide investigation. In the crucial hours and days following the shooting, however, authorities released very little information. No description of a suspect or a vehicle was made public, and no one was immediately taken into custody. The specific circumstances that led to the fatal confrontation on South Trumbull Avenue remained unknown, leaving a painful silence where answers should have been.

Years have passed since Andrew Dehart was killed, and his case has grown cold. There have been no arrests, and no suspects have been publicly identified. The official investigation remains open, but for his family and community, the path to justice has been long and frustratingly quiet. The lack of resolution compounds the grief of his loved ones, who are left to remember the man they lost without the closure of seeing anyone held accountable for his murder.

The tributes left in his memory speak to the profound and lasting pain of his absence. One message from a loved one reads, "I MISS YOU SOOOO MUCH Gorilla things have really change since you been gone." Another person wrote simply, "Love you, continue to sleep peacefully." These messages, along with the dozens of candles lit for him online, serve as a constant memorial to a life taken too soon and a reminder that behind the statistics of a violent year is a beloved son, brother, and friend who is deeply missed. As of late 2026, the murder of Andrew Dehart remains unsolved.