Charges upgraded against two accused of dumping booze on CTA bus driver
Women charged with dumping liquor on CTA driver
Two women who allegedly dumped liquor on a CTA bus driver and hit her with a milk crate will face felony charges — an announcement that came as transit workers rallied for more serious charges in such attacks as well as more protections on the job.
About 50 members of unions representing bus drivers and L workers protested outside a branch Cook County courthouse at 155 West 51st Street Monday in advance of a hearing about an incident involving bus driver Melissa Barker.
Barker, who attended the protest, said she was attacked on July 29 by two women while she was driving a bus in the 6900 block of South Halsted. The women were passengers on the bus when they approached the front, and one of the women dumped tequila on Barker and then threw the bottle over a protective barrier, barely missing her, Barker said. The second woman poured more liquor on her and struck her with a milk crate, Barker said.
According to a police report, one of the women said, “I’m gonna beat your ass” before exiting the bus. The pair then got on another bus, according to the report, but were arrested.
“It was not an argument about fare. It wasn’t an argument about getting off the bus, anything. It was just random,” Barker said.
Barker was unable to work for six weeks, and is now back on light duty. She has two bulging discs in her neck and cannot yet drive a bus.
“I love my job. School time, the kids, I’m missing all that,” Barker said.
The women were identified in court records as Miraha Gibson, 20, and Jada Goodall, 18.
The two women were initially charged with misdemeanor battery, drawing objections from the unions and the CTA. The Cook County state’s attorney’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
After the rally, the workers learned prosecutors planned to file new felony charges.
Barker hoped the new charges would be a “deterrent” for future attacks.
“It sends out a message that you cannot attack us and get away with it,” Barker said.
Union leaders called for further steps to protect drivers, including more police on high-crime routes and new protective barriers that would totally enclose drivers, allowing them to interact with the public through a quick-closing window.
Existing barriers “are good, but they could be better,” Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241 president Keith Hill said.
CTA spokesman Brian Steele said in a statement that the agency tried to prevent any assaults on drivers, but that attacks were rare. There have been 22 assaults that required medical treatment this year through the end of August, he said.
Hill says there have been about 15 attacks per month this year if you include incidents like drivers getting spit on.
A new CTA committee is considering steps to increase driver safety, and the transit agency will launch a pilot test of a system that allows drivers to see a live feed from on-board security cameras, Steele said.