A 21-year-old man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for shooting a CTA passenger on the Red Line nearly five years ago. Calvin Merritte was 17 when authorities accused him with the December 20, 2021 shooting that left the victim paralyzed from the waist down and unable to use his hands.
According to a Chicago police report and prosecutors, the 20-year-old victim was standing on a Red Line station with his brother and several others around 7:45 p.m. when he observed Merritte looking at him. The victim and his buddies departed the station, visited a local store, and then returned to board a train. According to prosecutors, Merritte was riding in the next automobile. As the train approached the 69th Street station, the victim and his associates entered the car in which Merritte was riding.
Merritte then pulled out a gun and shot the victim in the neck and right leg, prosecutors said. The incident was caught on CTA surveillance camera, which apparently revealed Merritte’s face from multiple angles. Police discovered four shell casings inside the train.
Police got a break some months later when they caught Merritte for an unrelated armed robbery, according to prosecutors. In that case, a man was going down the 1500 block of East 74th Street when three shooters emerged from a black SUV, robbed him, and pistol-whipped him. According to authorities, police tracked down the victim’s phone and discovered Merritte carrying the device in 2022.
Merritte’s resemblance to the Red Line gunman was recognized by Chicago police, who included his photo in a lineup shown to the shooting victim. The victim recognized Merritte as the shooter.
During an initial court appearance, Merritte’s defense attorney stated that both Merritte and his mother had viewed some of the CTA footage and denied that he was the shooter. Merritte’s most recent report card from the time of his arrest showed “three As, two Bs, and a C,” according to his counsel.
Merritte is scheduled for parole in February 2031. The result of the robbery case is unknown because it was not filed in adult court.
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