Supervisor Hahn calls for full account of Metro security protocols after yet another violent incident
Following yet another violent attack on a Metro train, Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn has called for a full account of the transportation agency's security protocols.
"I'm surprised that people are still riding the system," Hahn said in an interview with KCAL News. "It's not appearing to be safe."
The attack, which came at the hands of two suspects who targeted an Asian woman in her 50s, is just the latest in a disturbing trend of dangerous incidents that have occurred on Metro trains in recent months.
Hahn, who chairs the LA County Board of Supervisors, is also a Metro director. She says that the attack happened last Wednesday, May 17, when the woman was traveling on the northbound A Line near the Compton station.
"We have multi-million-dollar law enforcement contracts, Metro security and 300 Metro Ambassadors who have been hired to ride our buses and trains," Hahn said in a statement on Monday. "But where were they when this woman was beaten up on the Blue Line last week? With this many layers of security, why didn't anyone come to this woman's aid?"
As a result, Hahn plans on ordering full accounting of where all the scheduled transit ambassadors and Long Beach Police Department officers who were assigned to Metro were at the time of the attack.
"Enough is enough," Hahn said in a statement. "Our trains need to be safe for our residents."
A statement from LBPD says that officers were dispatched to the area at around 5:30 p.m. after learning of the attack. They found the victim suffering from minor injuries to the upper body.
"The victim was riding the train when a female adult suspect confronted her and hit her multiple times," the statement said. "When the victim left the train, a male suspect knocked her phone from her hands."
Officers were unable to find either suspect as they had both ran from the area before their arrival.
"At this time, there is no information to indicate this is a hate crime or bias motivated incident. The investigation is ongoing," police said.
