CTA employee who was stabbed on platform is cousin of alderman-elect

The CTA employee who was stabbed on a Red Line platform in the South Loop early Friday is a cousin of a Northwest Side alderman-elect.

A cousin of James “Jim” Gardiner — who defeated incumbent 45th Ward Ald. John Arena in last month’s election — was stabbed on the platform of the Roosevelt Red Line station, 1167 S. State, according to Chicago police.

Around 2 a.m. Friday, three people chased a man down a set of stairs at the station. The man being chased ran behind Gardiner’s cousin — an ironworker who was on the platform with several of his colleagues.

Police said Gardiner’s cousin got into an argument with the people who were chasing the man before he was stabbed.

Gardiner’s cousin, 38, suffered two stab wounds — one to his abdomen and another two his back — leaving him with a punctured lung. He was driven to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he underwent surgery Friday morning.

Reached Friday afternoon, Gardiner said his cousin is “doing well” and expects to be out of the hospital in three or four days.