A 38-year old Evanston woman fought off an attacker Wednesday night in Brummel Park, where she had been walking with her 2-year-old child in a stroller, police said.

The male attacker first struck the victim in the back of the head, then got on top of her and attempted to remove her clothing when she fell to the ground, according to a news release. The woman yelled and attempted to fight off her attacker, which attracted the attention of other people in the area. As the witnesses approached, the man fled westward on Dobson Street.

He is described as a 5-foot-6-inch male with a thin beard and short hair, wearing gray pants and a red tank top.

Police said the woman had bruises and a few scratches but did not require medical attention, said Evanston police Cmdr. Joseph Dugan. The woman’s child was not injured in the incident.

Dugan said the woman did the right thing by yelling and fighting back.

“In this instance, she must have felt that her safety and the safety of her child were in danger, so she chose to fight back….which effectively attracted people in the area to come assist her and scared the offender away,” he said. “So she survived, her kid survived.”

EPD detectives are investigating the incident as an attempted sexual assault.

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