Crime & Law
Man Charged in Killing of CPD Officer John Bartholomew at Swedish Hospital to be Detained in Jail
Police officers work the scene outside Endeavor Health Swedish Hospital in Lincoln Square, on Saturday, April 25, 2026. (Anthony Vazquez / Chicago Sun-Times via AP)
The man accused of killing Chicago police Officer John Bartholomew inside Endeavor Health Swedish Hospital allegedly concealed a handgun under a blanket and used it to shoot the officer and his partner.
A Cook County judge on Thursday ordered Alphanso Talley, 26, be detained in jail pending trial on a litany of felony charges including first-degree murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery, robbery and kidnapping.
He’s accused of fatally shooting Bartholomew, 38, and critically wounding his partner Saturday before making a chaotic escape from the hospital that was captured on numerous security cameras.
Talley was escorted to the North Side hospital by Bartholomew and his partner following his arrest in connection with an armed robbery at a Family Dollar store in the 3200 block of West Lawrence earlier that day. While he was in custody, he allegedly told police he was having difficulty breathing because he had ingested multiple bags of drugs before he was detained.
At the hospital, Talley’s left arm was handcuffed to a bed railing while his right hand remained free. Surveillance footage shows Talley “fidgeting” his right arm under a blanket that had been placed over him as he was wheeled by the officers and staff to an MRI/CT area in the hospital, prosecutors said.
Once there, Bartholomew uncuffed Talley so he could begin the MRI, at which point Talley allegedly moved quickly toward the end of his bed and grabbed a 10 mm handgun he’d used in the robbery that he concealed under his blanket.
Talley pointed the gun at Bartholomew and fired, striking him in the head, according to prosecutors. As two hospital staffers fled the room, Talley allegedly shot Bartholomew’s partner, striking him in the chin.
Officer John Bartholomew (Chicago Police Department)
Surveillance footage showed Talley then pointed his weapon at a room where one staffer had fled, but he was unable to get inside, prosecutors said. He then sought to flee the hospital, allegedly taking an ID badge from a hospital engineer and running toward an employee entrance area where he shot through a glass door and headed outside.
Prosecutors said Talley, who was naked, chased another hospital employee and demanded their car keys before running from the hospital grounds.
He was allegedly captured on several private surveillance cameras running through yards carrying his hospital gown and was arrested less than 90 minutes later as he hid under the porch of a home about a third of a mile from the hospital.
Prosecutors did not detail exactly how Talley was able to get the gun into the hospital after his arrest.
Bartholomew died of his injuries, while his partner, a 57-year-old man with 21 years of CPD service, remains in critical condition. Prosecutors said each officer was struck once, and the bullet that hit Bartholomew’s partner was lodged in the back of his neck.
Evidence technicians recovered a pair of fired shell casings from the CT room that were matched to Talley’s firearm, prosecutors said.
The hospital said in a Facebook posting Saturday that an individual in custody of law enforcement was brought to the emergency department for treatment and was “wanded upon arrival,” following the protocols. He was escorted by law enforcement at all times, the hospital said.
Prosecutors on Thursday also detailed the armed robbery that led to Talley’s initial arrest.
He and another unknown man allegedly entered the Family Dollar just as it opened around 8 a.m. Saturday. Talley allegedly pointed his gun at a 55-year-old employee, used it to strike her in the face and forced her from the front of the store into a back office.
He held her there as the other man tried to open the store’s cash register and safe, then demanded she open the safe for them, but she said she was unable to do so because she didn’t have the key, prosecutors said.
Talley allegedly took the woman’s wallet and car keys before striking her twice more in the face with his gun. She was eventually able to open the register, from which Talley took $110 in cash and fled with the other man, prosecutors said.
Unknown to him, the stolen cash had been marked with GPS tracking and officers were able to follow that and locate Talley within 10 minutes of the robbery, according to prosecutors. He allegedly provided a fake name and told police he was trying to order an Uber.
The victim was hospitalized with two black eyes and a broken nose requiring surgery, prosecutors said.
Talley has an extensive criminal history, including an armed robbery charge from last year, as well as previous convictions for aggravated battery of a peace officer, possession of a stolen motor vehicle and multiple other aggravated robberies. He was on electronic monitoring at the time of the incident.
He is due back in court for a hearing May 20.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
