Evidence Supports Mom's Stroller Story: Cops
Union officials: stroller doesn't appear to be badly damaged
NBCChicago.com
Paint chips seem to corroborate a mother's story that a Chicago Transit Authority train pulled out of the Morse Street station with a stroller and young girl lodged in its doors, police say.
The mother's story was called into question publicly yesterday, when a CTA union head said the stroller in question was barely damaged when it was discovered five stations away.
But police said Thursday that the mother's story is "credible," according to the Chicago Tribune, and said that traces of paint found on the stroller appear to have been from the guard rail.
The mother, Ebere Ozonwu, said she was pushing the stroller into the train Monday evening when the doors closed and the train began moving. The stroller was dragged through the Morse Street station until it struck a barrier and the end of the platform, tossing the baby out.
Baby Rachel was retrieved from the trackbed.
The operator of the train told union officials Tuesday night that she followed standard operating procedures by visually checking the doors before setting the train in motion. She's on unpaid leave while the CTA investigates.
CTA tests on the doors showed that the "bounce back" mechanism was working properly.
Police, the CTA and the transit union say they continue to investigate the incident.
Posted Thursday, Nov 5, 2009 - 3:55 PM CST
