Chicago woman shot on CTA bus in Englewood says argument over seat led to gunfire

A Chicago woman said she feels lucky to be alive after she and a man were shot on a CTA bus on Wednesday in Englewood. The woman said the shooting happened after a dispute over a seat, an argument she wasn't even involved in.

Police said, around 4:40 p.m. on Wednesday, a 65-year-old woman and a 57-year-old man, were on a CTA bus in the 300 block of West 63rd Street, when someone on the bus opened fire, wounding both of them. Police sources said one round was fired from a gun, and that bullet hit both victims.

Both victims were taken to University of Chicago Medical Center. The man was listed in critical condition after he was shot in his left side between his ribs and hip.

The woman, Gwendolyn Jackson, was released after doctors treated a gunshot wound to her arm.

"It went through my jacket. I'm hit on this, my left arm," she said. "The bullet is still in there. They never took the bullet out. It's still in my arm. I could feel the blood rushing out of me. I could see the blood."

Jackson said she was sitting on the bus when she heard people arguing over her head, and then shots were fired.

She said she was on her way home from work, when a man on the bus refused to move over for a woman to sit down. Another man with that woman got into an argument with the first man.

"They're fighting. So by them bumping against my head, I'm trying to stand up," she said. "I felt something hit my arm. I'm like, 'I'm hit.'"

Jackson said she's not sure if the 57-year-old man who was shot had anything at all to do with the argument.

Jackson said she's grateful to be alive. She said her doctors told her it's best not to remove the bullet, because doing so would cause more damage. If the bullet moves to the surface of her arm, that's the only time they would remove it.

"The only thing I got to say is, I mean, the CTA got to get better. You know, these people out here, they're crazy, they're angry, they're mad. We're all going through something, but there's no reason to come out and take it out on somebody else," Jackson said.     

Keith Hill, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241, the union representing CTA and Pace bus drivers and mechanics, said the union has asked for additional security on that bus line.

 "63rd is one of the streets that we have constantly complained about, and we've been asking for a presence on 63rd, especially from Cottage Grove all the way to Western," Hill said.

Hill said, on other routes, where Cook County Sheriff's police are present, crime has gone down.

The CTA referred questions about those safety concerns and crime to Chicago police, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment.