Surveillance video captured fatal stabbing of CTA worker, prosecutors say
Court proffer details fatal stabbing of CTA worker
New details emerged Sunday about a deadly confrontation at a Chicago CTA station, and what happened afterward.
CHICAGO - A court hearing Sunday revealed new details about what led up to and followed the fatal stabbing of a CTA worker last week.
CTA worker stabbing details
A judge ordered Chevazz Campbell detained at the Cook County Jail while he awaits trial in connection with the death of Julian Mobley, a 41-year-old CTA rail maintenance janitor.
Campbell faces charges including first-degree murder, armed robbery and unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon.
Chevazz Campbell (Chicago Police Department)
According to the court proffer, Campbell entered the Damen Green Line station at about 2:58 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 8, carrying a gray Adidas duffel bag and a smaller black crossbody bag.
Prosecutors said Campbell got through an accessible gate without paying and began arguing with a CTA employee inside a customer service kiosk. Mobley was sweeping nearby and also got into an argument with Campbell as Campbell went toward the platform.
The proffer says Campbell eventually left the station, removed an item from his crossbody bag and went back inside. Prosecutors said he sprayed Mobley in the face with mace twice.
Mobley ran from the station. Prosecutors said Campbell followed him, pulled out a knife and stabbed him once in the back of the neck. Prosecutors said the fatal attack was captured on surveillance video.
Mobley then ran to a janitor’s closet. A CTA employee and firefighters followed a trail of blood and found him unconscious. He was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The proffer says Mobley’s CTA identification card, lanyard and work phone fell during the confrontation. Surveillance video showed Campbell bending near a storm drain as he fled, and Mobley’s items were later recovered from that drain.
According to the proffer, Campbell went to a nearby convenience store, transferred items from his duffel bag into a plastic bag, turned his jacket inside out and asked the store owner to hold onto the duffel bag. He also asked to borrow a hat.
Campbell turned himself in at a Chicago police station later that evening, according to prosecutors.
After being advised of his rights, prosecutors said Campbell admitted to cutting Mobley and spraying him with mace.
Questions about electronic monitoring
At the time of the stabbing, Campbell was on electronic monitoring as a condition of probation in two felony cases, according to the joint statement from Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke and Amalgamated Transit Union Local 308 President Pennie McCoach.
The statement says prosecutors had filed probation violations against Campbell on at least four occasions because of repeated curfew violations.
Burke and McCoach said the electronic monitoring system’s failures "could not be clearer," arguing that it lacks effective oversight and proactive enforcement.
"We need a permanent legislative solution to close these gaps, strengthen accountability, and better protect people like Julian, who deserve to be safe on the job and return home to their families after work," the statement read.
What's next:
Burke and McCoach are scheduled to hold a news conference at 10 a.m. Monday to call for legislative changes to the electronic monitoring system and better protection for transit workers and the public.
Mobley had been a member of ATU Local 308 since 2018. The union said he was a husband and father who leaves behind his wife of 20 years, a 14-year-old child and an 18-month-old child.
Campbell will remain detained as the case moves forward.
The Source: The information in this story came from Cook County court documents, the Chicago Police Department, and a joint statement from Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke and ATU Local 308 President Pennie McCoach.