Facial recognition technology has played a crucial role in helping Chicago police identify a suspect in the murder of a street pastor who frequently rode CTA trains at night to provide homeless individuals with a place to sleep, according to prosecutors. This arrest comes amidst efforts by some lawmakers to ban the use of facial recognition by state and local law enforcement agencies throughout Illinois.
The suspect, Michael Wilson, 25, faces charges of first-degree murder for the December killing of Chad Schenk, a 41-year-old street pastor known for riding CTA trains to connect homeless individuals with shelters, prosecutors stated.
A detention filing revealed that Schenk and Wilson were strangers who met on an inbound Blue Line train in the early hours of December 14, 2025. Prosecutors indicated that Schenk offered Wilson a place to stay for the night, which Wilson accepted.
Surveillance footage from the CTA allegedly captured the two men exiting the UIC-Halsted Blue Line station around 12:50 a.m., with additional video showing them walking to Schenk’s apartment located in the 700 block of South Carpenter Street. Prosecutors noted that Wilson was seen wearing a distinctive “zombie bear” backpack.
Prosecutors said that once inside Schenk’s apartment, Wilson was given drinks and took a shower before sleeping on makeshift pallets made of blankets on the floor.
In later questioning by police, Wilson reportedly claimed he awoke during the night to find Schenk touching his own nipple. After returning to sleep, Wilson said he woke again to find Schenk sitting with his back against the wall, his legs intertwined with Wilson’s, according to prosecutors.
Wilson allegedly told investigators that he “freaked out,” prompting Schenk to jump up. In response, Wilson fired eight shots at Schenk’s face and neck with a gun hidden beneath a blanket, prosecutors alleged. Wilson then left the apartment, they said.
Concerned after not hearing from Schenk for several days, a longtime friend called 911 to request a well-being check. Officers responding to the call found Schenk’s apartment door open and discovered him dead inside.
Investigators used location data from Schenk’s cellphone to trace his movements to the Blue Line. They reviewed CTA video and saw he had left the train with another man, whose image was then fed into the Secretary of State’s facial recognition system. Prosecutors said the system positively identified Wilson.
On New Year’s Eve, officers patrolling the Jackson Red Line station arrested Wilson, who was allegedly carrying a handgun, 14 rounds of ammunition, and a drum magazine inside the same “zombie bear” backpack seen in surveillance footage. Prosecutors said he was also wearing the same clothes as the night of Schenk’s murder. Wilson, who was on parole at the time, had an outstanding parole warrant, they added.
Authorities later confirmed that the gun seized during the Red Line arrest was the murder weapon used to kill Schenk. Wilson has been detained on the gun-related charges since his arrest on December 31. Judge Deidre Dyer approved the prosecutors’ request to detain Wilson on the murder charges as well.
Court records indicate Wilson has previous convictions, including a November 2024 battery conviction for attacking a stranger near Rush Street and Chicago Avenue, during which he punched, chased, and kicked the victim. He received a 100-day sentence for that incident.
During that attack, Wilson was already on probation for a separate felony gun case. This charge stemmed from his arrest in April 2024, when officers responding to a report of a person with a gun in the 900 block of South Halsted Street found Wilson in possession of a loaded firearm after a witness identified him.
Wilson’s arrest highlights the ongoing debate surrounding the use of facial recognition technology in law enforcement, as a North Side lawmaker seeks to ban its use. Rep. Kelly Cassidy has proposed a bill to prevent any local or state law enforcement agency in Illinois from accessing facial recognition databases, prohibiting agencies from contracting the work to third parties as well.
The bill did not advance out of the Illinois House Judiciary – Civil Committee before the session adjourned in March but has gained three new co-sponsors from Chicago: Rep. Kevin Olickal, Rep. Lilian Jiménez, and Rep. Diane Blair-Sherlock, indicating continued support for the measure.
CWB Chicago has previously reported on numerous violent crimes, many involving the CTA, where Chicago detectives developed key leads using surveillance images fed into facial recognition databases, often those maintained by the Illinois Secretary of State.
These cases have included murders, rapes, robberies, and kidnappings. Shortly after a report on these cases, investigators employed facial recognition to identify Jose Miranda, accused of murdering Loyola University freshman Sheridan Gorman near Loyola Beach—a crime occurring in Cassidy’s district.
Last month, Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke emphasized facial recognition as a vital tool for combating crime on the CTA.
Cassidy criticized CWB Chicago’s detailed reports on cases solved with facial recognition as “anecdotes,” expressing concerns about wrongful identifications leading to people being detained due to system errors.
Both supporters and critics of the bill agree on one point: no one in Illinois has been criminally charged based solely on a facial recognition match without additional evidence.
Detectives use such matches as starting points for developing leads, not as grounds for charges, according to retired suburban Riverside police chief Tom Weitzel. He described the technology as “one of the most important investigative tools in policing in 50 years” and claimed Cassidy’s bill “destroys” it rather than regulates it.
The ACLU of Illinois backs the ban and acknowledges it would completely end law enforcement’s use of the tool. Some observers advocate for a compromise: establishing best practices, prohibiting arrests based solely on a facial recognition match, requiring officer training and certification, and mandating that biometric data of cleared suspects be deleted within 72 hours.
An ACLU representative also noted the lack of examples where facial recognition leads to criminal charges without corroborating evidence, though he mentioned that limited public reporting on the tool’s usage obscures the complete picture.
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