A late Saturday in Chicago’s Back of the Yards neighborhood turned grim when officers found the decomposing body of a woman inside a trash can in an alley behind the 700 block of West 54th Street near Emerald Avenue. Police discovered around 6:25 p.m., then opened a death investigation led by Wentworth-area detectives. An autopsy is pending with the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office, and authorities have not yet released any identifying details as they continue their work.
What police said
According to CBS Chicago, officers discovered the woman’s remains in a garbage can located in an alley behind the 700 block of West 54th Street near Emerald Avenue. Police are treating the scene as a death investigation. The outlet reports that Wentworth-area detectives are handling the case and that the discovery was logged at about 6:25 p.m. Saturday while officials await the autopsy results.
Autopsy and next steps
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office, which operates the Robert J. Stein Institute of Forensic Medicine, is responsible for autopsies and identification work in county cases, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. Autopsy findings, which can establish both cause and manner of death, will guide detectives as they sort through what happened. Investigators are also canvassing the area for witnesses and reviewing any available surveillance footage while the medical examiner completes its examination.
Back of the Yards in brief
Back of the Yards, on Chicago’s Southwest Side, grew up around the old Union Stock Yards and today mixes industrial corridors with dense residential blocks and long-running community groups such as the Back of the Yards Neighborhood Council. The neighborhood’s history of organizing and civic activism has helped shape how residents respond to violent incidents, as documented by the Encyclopedia of Chicago. Community members and local organizers often push for more information and resources when high-profile cases surface in the area.
How to help
Police are asking anyone with information to contact Wentworth-area detectives. CBS Chicago reports that investigators are particularly interested in tips, surveillance video and any eyewitness accounts from the 700 block of West 54th Street and surrounding blocks to help move the investigation forward.
