Chicago crime: Lake Villa woman punched, knocked out in Loop; records show William Livingston previously accused of hitting others
A north suburban woman was knocked out after being randomly punched downtown Chicago. The suspect has been accused of attacking women and girls in the past.
Kathleen Miles only works downtown one day a week. She was walking to Union Station when she was randomly punched in the face on Aug. 19.
She's still suffering the physical consequences of that attack. But it's what she's found about the person who prosecutors say did it that has led her to speak out.
Sitting at home in Lake Villa, Miles admits the last thing she remembers before her attack is walking past Block 37 in the Loop on the way to Union Station.
"I woke up, and my co-worker was standing above me, saying, 'you're OK. You're in the hospital. You've been assaulted,'" Miles said.
She then passed out again.
"The next thing I remember is my daughter, Deanna, saying, 'Hi mama, I'm here. You're OK,'" Miles said.
And while she doesn't remember what happened, a colleague who was walking with her at the time told her.
"She had said, 'This man came in between the two of us, shoved us apart, and then hit me in the face,'" Miles said.
That punch left Miles with several broken bones in her face, as well as a concussion.
SEE ALSO: Woman punched in face while walking on Near North Side: Chicago police
According to police, she was assaulted by 32-year-old William Livingston.
A records search produced 13 mugshots of Livingston going back to 2012. A large number of those arrests were for aggravated assault and battery of both women and police officers.
"Like, what is enough? You know, what does someone have to do? Where someone, where he's going to be, where they're going to be held accountable," Miles said.
According to online records, Livingston's history of random acts of violence against women goes back eight years.
In 2017, he was accused of randomly attacking two women months apart. Both cases were dropped.
In 2022, Livingston was sentenced to five years in prison after prosecutors said he punched and attempted to rob four women within 20 minutes in the Loop.
In 2023, while on parole, Livingston was arrested for hitting a woman in the face on North Michigan Avenue.
And in 2024, Livingston was sentenced to 100 days in prison after he punched a 15-year-old girl, also on North Michigan Avenue.
"It's 2025, and he's out. And if he had been held accountable for his actions, then I wouldn't be sitting here with injuries," Miles said.
Livingston's next court date is for Sept. 15 at the Skokie Courthouse. Miles says she will be there.
The Cook County State's Attorney said in a statement, "While we cannot comment on the specifics of prior incidents, the CCSAO evaluates each case based on the available evidence and the applicable law, and when appropriate, seeks pre-trial detention for dangerous individuals, as was done in this case. We take our role to present the fullest possible picture for judges to make detention decisions very seriously. We review all cases for felony approval when presented by law enforcement and have a continuing obligation to assess the evidence in any charged case. This includes both the most recent matter as well as any future cases submitted for review."
