Ald. Cappleman Says He Was Chased By Woman With Knife

By Samantha Abernethy in News on Aug 29, 2012 7:20PM

Ald. James Cappleman (46th) says a woman in Uptown chased him with a knife when he called police because she was sitting on the sidewalk at Montrose and Broadway drinking a can of beer. “She reached into her blouse and was chasing me," Cappleman told the Sun-Times. "Two witnesses told me, ‘She has a knife. You’d better run’ — and I did.”

The woman was identified as Shermain Miles, who has been arrested 448 times. The attack on Cappleman added misdemeanor aggravated assault and battery for pushing the Cappleman in the bushes. Cappleman says the woman is well known in the community.

The Sun-Times writes:

“I’ve seen her many times with her breast hanging out of her blouse. She’s high sometimes on alcohol sometimes crack. She has mental illness.… The community knows her. The police know her. Social services know her. Everyone knows her very well,” said Cappleman, 59.

“The real story is not that she chased after me with a knife or no knife. … The real story is that we have someone in the community with 448 arrests who is terrorizing our community and we can’t stop it. This has gone on for years and years with her. … My goal is that we do something so that she stops falling through the cracks. … My goal is to get this woman help so she is off the streets. I’m tired of this. The community is tired of this.”

This isn't the first time Cappleman's vigilantism has gotten him in trouble with Uptown weirdos. In May, a pigeon lady shoved Cappleman and threw breadcrumbs at him when he swept up breadcrumbs that she'd thrown out for the birds.