Teen charged with guard's attempted murder at St. Charles youth facility

An 18-year-old from Kankakee has been charged with attempted murder in the severe beating of an Illinois Youth Center guard in August 2018.

Kane County prosecutors recently were granted a petition to charge Antonio Harvey Jr. in adult court. Harvey was just shy of his 17th birthday and was being detained at the youth center at the time of the attack, officials have said.

Wednesday, Harvey's case was called before Kane County Judge Salvatore LoPiccolo and was continued to May 27.

Defense attorney William Wolf declined to comment, saying it was his first appearance in the case and he still needed to obtain the indictment and other reports from prosecutors.

In addition to attempted first-degree murder, Harvey faces felony charges of aggravated battery/great bodily harm, aggravated battery to a victim 60 or older, aggravated battery in a public place, and aggravated battery to a peace officer, according to Kane County court records.

Harvey, of the 2000 block of Patrick Avenue, is accused of attacking a jail guard who was older than 60, slamming him to the floor and beating him on his upper body, prosecutors said.

Assistant State's Attorney Vince Coyle did not have additional information about the guard's injuries.

A message left at the youth center Wednesday was not immediately returned.

Harvey faces a sentence ranging from six to 30 years in prison if convicted of attempted murder, plus possible additional penalties because of the victim's age and his official capacity as a law enforcement officer.