Police say the teenager was among three people involved in pushing 29-year-old Kyle Bickham from a moving train near 69th Street.
CHICAGO — A 15-year-old girl has been charged with first-degree murder after police said she helped push a 29-year-old man from a moving CTA Red Line train on Chicago’s South Side, leading to his death.
The girl, whose name has not been released because she is a juvenile, was arrested Friday in connection with the Sept. 7 death of Kyle T. Bickham. Chicago police said she faces multiple charges, including first-degree murder, mob action and aggravated battery involving a transit passenger. She was expected to appear in juvenile court Saturday for a detention hearing.
Police said Bickham was riding a Red Line train near the 69th Street station at about 2:30 p.m. Monday when an altercation developed involving three other people. Investigators allege the three used force to push Bickham from the moving train. Police have not publicly detailed what caused the confrontation or what happened immediately before Bickham was pushed.
Bickham fell near the tracks and was struck by another train, authorities said. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The Cook County medical examiner’s office identified him as 29-year-old Kyle T. Bickham and ruled his death a homicide. Authorities have described the fatal injuries in restrained terms as injuries caused when he was struck by the train.
Police initially reported that Bickham had jumped from the moving train. Investigators changed that account after reviewing the case and said Tuesday that three people involved in the altercation had pushed him. The revised finding led Area 1 detectives to investigate the death as a homicide.
Bickham’s family said he was returning home from work when he was killed. Relatives told Chicago news organizations that he worked at an Amazon facility and had been heading home after a shift. They remembered him as hardworking, caring and devoted to his family, and said he often made those around him laugh.
The arrest announced Saturday is the first publicly reported charge in the homicide investigation. Police have said three people were involved in pushing Bickham from the train, but officials had not announced charges against the other two people as of Saturday morning. Police also had not said publicly whether those two people had been identified or taken into custody.
The teenager is accused of a crime, and the charges against her have not been proven in court. Because she is 15, authorities have withheld her identity. Public information about juvenile proceedings can also be more limited than in adult criminal cases.
The killing occurred aboard one of Chicago’s busiest transit lines and renewed attention on safety aboard CTA trains. Investigators can draw on surveillance cameras throughout the transit system as they work to reconstruct events, but police have not released video of the altercation or provided a detailed account of the evidence that led them to identify the girl.
Chicago police said the girl was due in juvenile court Saturday. The investigation remains open, with detectives still seeking to determine the roles of the other people allegedly involved in Bickham’s death.
Author note: Last updated September 12, 2026.