Yesenia Garzon, 28, died early on Monday, June 24, 2024, after she was dropped off at Jackson Park Hospital and Medical Center in the 7500 block of South Stony Island Avenue in the South Shore neighborhood on Chicago's South Side. The Chicago Police Department investigated her death, which was ruled a homicide.
According to police, Garzon was left at the hospital about 3:15 a.m. It was not clear at first what her injuries were. She was pronounced dead a short time later.
The Chicago Sun-Times homicide tracker, which lists every homicide in the city, records the cause as an assault or beating. Police did not say who brought her to the hospital, what vehicle was used, or where she had been hurt.
Detectives said they were speaking with a person of interest in what they first described as a suspicious death. No name was released, and no charge against that person or anyone else could be found in the months and years since. No further details, follow-up appeal or reward tied to her death were made public.
Online obituary listings confirm that Yesenia Garzon died on June 24, 2024. One lists her as being from Chicago; another notes funeral services provided through a Heritage funeral home and gives Berwyn, a western suburb, as a location. Her name also appears on the 2024 memorial list for Resurrection Catholic Cemetery published by the Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Chicago. Her family has not spoken publicly about her death in any coverage found for this account.
Jackson Park Hospital sits on South Stony Island Avenue, a wide commercial boulevard on the western edge of South Shore, just south of Jackson Park. The address recorded for the case is the hospital, not the place where she was hurt, which remains unknown. Hospital staff, security cameras and anyone on Stony Island Avenue at about 3 a.m. that Monday may have seen the vehicle that brought her there.
Chicago recorded about 590 homicides in 2024, down from about 620 in 2023 and well below the roughly 800 of 2021, the deadliest year in a quarter century. Chicago police reported clearing 56 percent of homicides in 2024, though that figure counts cases closed without charges.
Her case stands out in several ways. She was a young woman, while most homicide victims in Chicago are men. She was left at a hospital rather than found at a scene, which means the people who brought her there knew something about how she was hurt. And police identified a person of interest within hours.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Yesenia Garzon could be found in news archives or public records. More than 2 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who was with Yesenia Garzon on the night of June 23, 2024, who knows where she was injured, or who saw her being brought to Jackson Park Hospital, may be able to help. Even a small detail, such as a name overheard, a car seen leaving the area or a conversation remembered, can help detectives move a case forward. Anyone with information can call the Chicago Police Department's anonymous tip line at (833) 408-0069 or submit a tip online at CPDTIP.com, or contact Cook County Crime Stoppers at (800) 535-STOP (7867).
