Nationwide — Kyle Bickham, a 29-year-old African American man from Chicago, was killed after 3 people reportedly pushed him from a moving Chicago Transit Authority Red Line train. A 15-year-old girl has been arrested and charged in connection with his death, while Bickham’s family is asking the other people involved to turn themselves in.
Chicago police arrested the girl on Friday, Sept. 11, four days after the deadly attack. She appeared in juvenile court Saturday, where a judge found probable cause on charges of first-degree murder, murder by another forcible felony, mob action, and aggravated battery to a transit employee. The judge ordered her to remain in custody. She returned to court Monday, Sept. 14, and was again ordered detained until her next hearing in October.
According to CBS News, police said the attack happened around 2:30 p.m. Sept. 7 near the 69th Street station along the Dan Ryan Expressway. Investigators said Bickham had been involved in some type of fight before three people allegedly pushed him from the moving train. He fell onto the electrified third rail, where another train struck him. Authorities later ruled his death a homicide.
Bickham was heading home to Lansing after finishing a shift at an Amazon warehouse in Cicero, his family said. His relatives have been left trying to understand what led to the confrontation and why it ended with his death. Police have identified the teenage girl as one of the 3 people they believe pushed him, but no other suspects had been arrested as of Monday.
The family spoke publicly about the loss during a press conference Sunday and urged the other people involved to come forward. They also asked witnesses and the parents of any young people involved to help authorities identify those responsible. Bickham’s brother, Christopher Bickham Jr., directed an emotional message at the people who took part in the attack. “Y’all took a part of me that I can’t get back. Like, just turn y’all selves in. Like, I forgive y’all already.”
His father, Christopher Bickham Sr., also raised concerns about the circumstances surrounding his son’s death and transit safety. “I wish this pain on no one. No one else. I wish that no one else has to go through this,” he said. “Fix the trains. Whatever’s happening with the trains, it shouldn’t have been that easy.” The teenager had previously been reported missing from Chicago’s south suburbs before police arrested her. Authorities have not publicly identified the other two people believed to have been involved.