Cab driver attacked, hurt by youths

A taxi driver was hospitalized early Wednesday morning after a group of youths assaulted him during a dispute that resulted after one of them threw a traffic cone at his cab.

The taxi driver was driving at Francis Avenue and North Elgin Street just before midnight Tuesday when someone among a group of several men threw a traffic cone at his car. The cab driver turned his vehicle into a curb and destroyed a tire.

The driver then got out and approached the group, police spokesman Dick Cottam said. At least one of the youths hit the driver, and he fell to the ground. Several of the group joined the fray and hit and kicked the driver, Cottam said.

The driver was later taken to an area hospital and was treated for cuts and a concussion. His injuries were not life threatening.

A witness took down the license plate of one of the two cars the group used to flee the scene. Officers checked the registration and went to the home of 20-year-old Adam A. Shaw, who lives at 4609 N. Hartley, Cottam said.

Shaw told the officer what happened and gave the names of the other people involved. Shaw was booked into jail on the charge of second-degree assault.

Police also arrested 19-year-old Chad W. Primmer on the same charge. The investigation is continuing, Cottam said.