Evans was no ordinary physician. He worked in pediatric critical care at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and served as an assistant professor of critical care medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. His professional work included caring for some of the hospital’s most vulnerable young patients.
Now, instead of treating children facing life-threatening emergencies, Evans has become the victim of a horrifying crime that unfolded only feet away from his own children.
Family Wakes Up to Nightmare
Allegheny County police responded to the family’s Linden Avenue home at approximately 12:30 a.m.
According to court documents cited by WPXI, Evans’ wife told investigators that she and her husband woke up to a man attacking them in their bedroom with a kitchen knife.
The alleged attacker was reportedly wearing only underwear and talking about “being God.”
Amid the chaos, Evans’ wife reportedly screamed for their children to get out.
The 8-year-old and 12-year-old managed to escape the house and seek safety at a neighbor’s home.
Their parents were not so fortunate.
Police found Evans and his wife suffering from serious stab wounds. Both were rushed to hospitals in critical condition.
Evans later died from his injuries.
His wife survived the initial attack.
Authorities described the destruction left inside the bedroom as extraordinary.
“It was a very violent scene,” Allegheny County Assistant Superintendent Victor Joseph said. “The bedroom furniture was broken, mirrors broken. It was a very graphic scene.”
Suspect Found Hiding Nearby
Police identified the suspect as 32-year-old Elijah Hemingway of Pittsburgh.
Investigators say Hemingway entered the residence through a window before making his way upstairs and attacking the sleeping couple.
A police K9 unit later located Hemingway behind another home nearby. He had cuts on his hand and was taken into custody before receiving medical treatment, according to local reports.
Hemingway allegedly gave investigators a dramatically different account.
He reportedly claimed Evans had invited him to the residence hours earlier and alleged that the couple attacked him first.
Investigators said they found no evidence supporting that version of events, according to the criminal complaint cited by WPXI.
One mystery remains.
Evans’ wife reportedly told investigators that she did not know Hemingway, but recalled hearing her husband refer to the attacker as “Elijah.”
Police have said they are still investigating whether Evans and Hemingway had any prior relationship.
“We do not know if there was any pre-existing relationship,” Joseph said. “The woman did not know this male. We are trying to determine if the two males knew each other.”
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Hemingway now faces charges including criminal homicide, aggravated assault, burglary and criminal trespass. The charges remain allegations unless and until proven in court.
Suspect Was Already Out on Non-Monetary Bail
The case has drawn additional attention because Hemingway was already facing serious criminal allegations when Thursday’s deadly attack occurred.
Court records cited by KDKA Radio show Hemingway had been arrested in July over a separate burglary that allegedly occurred in February.
That earlier case included felony burglary and theft charges.
Yet Hemingway was not being held in jail while the case moved through the courts.
Instead, he had been released on a non-monetary bond.
CBS Pittsburgh reported that Hemingway was scheduled to return to court in connection with that burglary case just one week after the deadly attack on Evans.
He never made it to that hearing without another arrest.
He is now accused of breaking into a family’s home, killing a father and pediatric physician, critically injuring the man’s wife and sending two young children fleeing into the night for help.
Hospital Community Mourns
Evans’ death has devastated the medical community where he spent his career caring for seriously ill children.
“The UPMC and University of Pittsburgh community is deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Dr. Idris Evans, a pediatric critical care physician at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and an assistant professor of critical care medicine at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Evans was a dedicated caregiver and valued member of our hospital and university communities. Our thoughts are with his family, loved ones, and colleagues during this difficult time. We ask that their privacy be respected.”
The investigation into the killing remains ongoing, including the unanswered question of whether Evans knew his alleged attacker before the horrifying encounter.
What authorities have established so far is devastating enough: a doctor who spent his professional life fighting to save children was killed inside his own bedroom while his children were forced to flee their home — and the man accused of the attack had already been released while facing an unresolved felony burglary prosecution.
