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A 26-year-old woman who was set on fire allegedly by a career criminal in Chicago is being described by friends and neighbors as a kind and hardworking individual from a close-knit, small-town family.
Bethany MaGee, the victim of the horrific attack, is an avid reader who took honors classes at her high school in Indiana, a former classmate who goes by Ethan told the New York Post.
“She [is] incredibly smart. Very soft spoken, very gentle, very smart,” he said.
A local who lives near the family in their small, tight-knit Christian community in Upland, Indiana, said the community is keeping her in their thoughts and prayers as she remains in critical condition at a hospital burn unit following the attack on a CTA Blue Line train on Nov. 17.
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Bethany MaGee, who was critically injured in a Nov. 17, 2025, attack aboard a Chicago L train, holds a cat in an undated photo. (Bethany MaGee via Facebook)
“We just know they are going through a hard time, so we are praying for them,” one local told the outlet.
“They’re a wonderful family… about as loving as you can be,” the resident said, stressing the parents’ desire for privacy as they process the tragedy.
Authorities said the alleged attacker, 50-year-old Lawrence Reed, has spent decades cycling through the criminal justice system and was out on bond at the time of the assault.
Reed had been ordered onto electronic monitoring on Aug. 22, when Cook County Judge Teresa Molina-Gonzalez denied a prosecution request to keep him jailed on felony allegations that he knocked a social worker unconscious inside MacNeal Hospital’s psychiatric ward.
During that hearing, transcripts show Molina-Gonzalez told prosecutors, “I can’t keep everybody in jail because the State’s Attorney wants me to.”
According to court documents in that battery case, Cook County electronic monitoring records show Reed repeatedly violated his curfew and movement restrictions in the days leading up to the alleged Chicago Transit Authority attack on Nov. 17.
Split of the Chicago train attack crime scene and Lawrence Reed (Captured News; Chicago Police Department)
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On Tuesday, the White House weighed in on the attack on MaGee, blasting left-wing policies in deep-blue cities.
“Liberal soft-on-crime policies are FAILING American communities and endangering law-abiding citizens,” the White House wrote on X. “A career criminal with 72 arrests should have never been free to roam the streets. Pray for Bethany.”
Reed has been charged with committing a terrorist attack or violence against a mass transportation system, according to the criminal complaint.
Federal prosecutors allege that Reed intentionally used gasoline and a lighter to set MaGee on fire aboard the train at about 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 seated 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.
MaGee ran to the back of the car as he ignited the rest of the liquid in the bottle and then used it to light her on fire, according to the complaint.
Lawrence Reed is pictured in a courtroom sketch of his detention hearing on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (L.D. Chukman)
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MaGee’s hometown in Indiana is an enclave of fewer than 4,000 people and is home to Taylor University. She was raised by a doting family, a neighbor said.
A man who identified himself to the Post as the victim’s brother at a family home Monday said, “Thanks for stopping by but no comments at this time.”
Fox News’ Stephen Sorace, Greg Wehner, Alexandra Koch and Patrick McGovern contributed to this report.