Indiana woman burned on Chicago train, community prays for her recovery

The 26-year-old woman who was allegedly set on fire by a career criminal in Chicago is described by friends and neighbors as a kind and hard-working individual from a close-knit family in the small town.

Bethany MaGee, the victim of the horrific attack, was an avid reader who took honors classes at her high school in Indiana, a former classmate of Ethan’s who passed by said. New York Post.

“HE [is] incredibly smart. “He was very soft spoken, very kind, very smart,” he said.

A local who lives near the family in the small, close-knit Christian community of Upland, Indiana, said the community is keeping him in their thoughts and prayers as he remains in critical condition in the hospital burn unit following the Nov. 17 attack on a CTA Blue Line train.

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“We know they are going through a difficult time, so we are praying for them,” a local resident told the press.

“They’re a wonderful family… as loving as can be,” the resident said, emphasizing the parents’ desire for privacy while processing the tragedy.

The alleged attacker, Lawrence Reed, 50, had spent decades in the criminal justice system and was out on bail at the time of the attack, authorities said.

Reed was ordered on electronic monitoring on Aug. 22 after Cook County Judge Teresa Molina-Gonzalez denied a prosecution request to keep him in jail on felony allegations that he knocked a social worker unconscious in MacNeal Hospital’s psychiatric ward.

During the hearing, according to transcripts, Molina-Gonzalez told prosecutors: “I can’t keep everyone in jail because that’s what the State’s Attorney wants me to do.”

According to court documents in that case, Cook County electronic monitoring records show Reed repeatedly violated curfew and movement restrictions in the days before the alleged attack by the Chicago Transit Authority on Nov. 17.

Chicago train attack crime scene and Lawrence Reed split (Captured News; Chicago Police Department)

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On Tuesday, the White House weighed in on the attack on MaGee, trashing left-wing politics in the deep blue cities.

“Liberal soft-on-crime policies OPEN American communities to FAIL and endanger law-abiding citizens,” the White House wrote to X. “A career criminal with 72 arrests should never have been able to walk the streets freely. Pray for Bethany.”

According to the criminal complaint, Reed is accused of committing a terrorist attack or violence against the public transportation system.

Federal prosecutors allege Reed intentionally used gasoline and a lighter to set MaGee on fire on the train around 9:30 p.m.

U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois Andrew Boutros said MaGee was “minding her own business and reading her phone” while sitting in the middle of the train car when Reed approached her from behind, doused her head and body with gasoline and tried to ignite the liquid.

According to the complaint, MaGee ran behind the car as she ignited the rest of the liquid in the bottle and then used it to set the bottle on fire.

Lawrence Reed is pictured in the courtroom sketch of his detention hearing on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (LD Chukman)

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MaGee’s hometown, Indiana, is a conurbation of fewer than 4,000 people and home to Taylor University. A neighbor said he was raised by a very doting family.

“Thanks for stopping by, but no comment at this time,” a man who identified himself to the Post Monday as the victim’s brother, who lives at the family’s home, said.

Fox News’ Stephen Sorace, Greg Wehner, Alexandra Koch and Patrick McGovern contributed to this report.