Around 8:45 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 15, a man on the northbound Red Line train (third car from the front) started a very loud and lengthy cell phone conversation with his service provider, Sprint, telling them about his lousy service. The train was fairly crowded. The guy was acting like a clown and using colorful language to tell the customer service rep just how unhappy he was - over and over again. This conversation lasted from the time the train came out of the tunnel after North Avenue until the man was preparing to get off the train at Wilson.
I was also going to get off at Wilson and when I told the man he should save his cell phone conversations for when he isn't on the train, he became threatening and ultimately pulled a hunting knife and threatened to kill me. The man was African American, about 30, 6'1" and 175 lbs. He was wearing Middle Eastern clothing with a long white tunic that went down to his ankles. He was accompanied by a short, plump woman who appeared to be Middle Eastern and was also wearing Middle Eastern clothing. They both got off at Wilson. If anyone is familar with these people, please pass along any leads about where they live. He is a menace to society.
Holy cow that's terrible! On two previous occasions I've told people not to litter (one was a female Cubs fan dropping peanut shells on the ground and the other was a guy unwrapping a CD) and while the lady just laughed at me the man too got threatening, not with a knife though. That's horrible to hear and it's incidents like that that give Wilson a bad name. And of course the Green line is what gets security cameras, not stops like Wilson.
ReplyDelete-Brian
hmmmmmm. I sometimes want to tell people to shut up while riding the train. I sometimes want to tell some teenagers that I am not interested in hearing their crappy music. I don't because if I did something like this would happen. Did you call the police when this guy did this?
ReplyDeleteNo, I was almost at my stop though and was on my way to class and didn't have time to file a report. He actually even started it. I saw him dropping the wrapping on the floor and kept shooting him glances when he used some colorful language to tell me to stop looking at him and then later made some comments about me being white. It also appeared that at least one other guy on the train had his back and I was alone with my laptop. I made a comment to him as I exited the train and thankfully never saw him again.
ReplyDelete-Brian
A very unfortunate incident, but this is why you shouldn't confront people - leave that to the police or CTA....or just let it be. Yes, a loud talker is annoying but its not worth having a knife drawn on you, or worse.
ReplyDelete@Brian Peanut shells? Seriously? You realize those things are biodegradable and the least of our worries.
ReplyDelete"@Brian Peanut shells? Seriously? You realize those things are biodegradable and the least of our worries."
ReplyDeleteThey're not biodegradable on the train, they're trash. Maybe you don't care if your train is trashy and gross, but there are loads of people who do care. We should be able to live in a society where we can ask people to be polite, considerate and to not litter with out the fear of violence. We all have to live in this world, and we should respect other people and public property. Unfortunately some people are not considerate of others or public property, and we should be able to speak up and not expect someone to pull a knife on you.
So sorry this happened to you. It must have been terrifying to be threatened by a knife. If you filed a police report and are willing to go to court over this incident, you can take legal steps to address the issue.
ReplyDeleteStef,
ReplyDeleteStep out of la la land and get real. Not sure what utopia you come from, but confronting complete strangers over a perceived injustice, no matter how righteous you think you are, will get you into trouble more often than not.
Is it fair? Is it right? Of course not. But a little street smarts and common sense must be used. Or else if you're gonna confront people on the street you best be prepared for the consequences.
I wish I had called the police when an incident occurred on the Red Line between Granville and Wilson. Four people presumably African American (if it matters) were seated together passing around a bottle of something in a brown paper bag. There were two females and two males. One of the guys got up and walked to the area at the back of the train that could normally be closed off by the conductor. He whipped out his penis and urinated onto the floor. I was the only other person on the car. I exited the train at the next stop and walked down to the attendant at the station to report the incident. I provided the car number and the direction of the train, but doubt anything happened.
ReplyDeleteNormally, I would have confronted the person or pressed the emergency button.
If a car is crowded, I never confront the person. Instead, I might speak out to the others in the car and say something like, "Hey, anyone else in here think it is nasty that that guy is pissing on the floor over there?" "Who else could describe him to the police because I'm calling right now."
I'm also sick of the people eating full meals and leaving trash, chicken bones, grease, and the stench everywhere.
Be careful. There are so many people wondering the city off their medication. A seemingly normal person could be a violent criminal. However, if you witness violence or other crime, there are ways to ensure the criminal is caught. You don't have to get physically involved, but you shouldn't just do nothing.