Police responded to the Harlem CTA Blue Line stop around 8:30 a.m. on Dec. 1 after dispatch told officers that an elderly man had been punched and was laying on the train tracks. Dispatch also gave officers a description of the offender, who they located on the train platform and later identified as 39-year-old Tommie Carter.
Carter was charged with attempted murder and three counts of aggravated battery to a police officer.
According to the police report, when officers arrived at the CTA stop, they approached Carter to handcuff him, but he actively resisted. Even after police had Carter in custody, he remained resistant and spit on an officer.
Police reported that Carter’s actions that caused the man to fall on the tracks were unprovoked. They said that an outbound CTA train was approaching the Harlem terminal while the man was still on the tracks, but the conductor saw him and stopped. The victim also nearly struck the third rail, where high-voltage electricity runs to power the trains. The Forest Park Fire Department ambulance took the victim to Loyola Hospital for his injuries.
The River Forest Police Department provided backup for Carter’s arrest. The Forest Park Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Division worked with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office to interview witnesses and review video of the incident.
Carter had a pretrial release hearing at Maybrook Square Courthouse in Maywood on Dec. 3. He is now detained and in custody at the Cook County Sheriff’s Office.
