Conductor Throws Rider Out On His Face
South Shore train employee is charged with battery
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Is there a rule against sleeping on the train?
An Indiana train conductor took the term, "Throw the bum out," to a new level recently and, as a result, is facing battery charges.
Gregory Beach, a 48-year-old conductor on the South Shore commuter train line, is accused of pushing a Gary, Ind., resident off the top steps of a train at the Dune Park station, causing the rider, Calvin Kirk, to lose teeth and suffer a variety of cuts and bruises.
There's really no indication that Kirk is a bum, he had simply fallen asleep along the way.
Kirk's attorney Mitch Peters says his client was dozing when he was roused by Beach and tossed face first off the train. He says Kirk was posing no threat.
Charles Parkinson, an attorney for the company that operates the line, says it is conducting an internal investigation and Beach could face disciplinary action in accordance with the line's collective bargaining agreement.
Copyright Associated Press / NBC Chicago
Posted Wednesday, Jul 22, 2009 - 2:26 PM CST
