A Chicago man has been detained after a confrontation aboard a Red Line train was captured on video, allegedly showing him attacking another passenger before kicking him off the train. Records show he was already on pretrial release in two other cases at the time.
The incident occurred around 3:52 p.m. Monday, August 31, on a northbound train near the Chicago-State station, according to Chicago police. The 40-year-old victim told officers that Johnelle McDonald stood up during the ride and repeatedly coughed in his face, according to a CPD media statement. The two began arguing before McDonald allegedly started striking the victim in the face and body and using his fingers to gouge the victim’s eyes and mouth, police said.
A bystander recorded the confrontation and later posted the video online. The footage shows the victim lying on his back against a train door while the other man, allegedly McDonald, repeatedly punches him. The victim eventually gets back to his feet. When the train arrived at the Chicago-State station and the doors opened, the video appears to show the other man kicking the victim off the train. Police responded, and officers arrested McDonald at the Fullerton stop.
According to CPD records, Monday’s arrest marked the sixth time Chicago police had arrested McDonald in the past year. He was on pretrial release in two theft cases when the Red Line incident occurred. One involved a felony theft case from February, while the other was a misdemeanor retail theft case stemming from an arrest just nine days before the train confrontation. Both theft cases originated at the same store in the 3100 block of North Clark Street in Lakeview.
Judge Antara Rivera detained McDonald on a new charge of aggravated battery of a transit passenger. She also detained him for violating the conditions of his pretrial release.
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