Tuesday morning in East Hollywood descended into violence at a Metro station, where an altercation left a trespasser dead and a security guard wounded. The incident occurred during "a routine security sweep" of an area not meant for the public at the station at the intersection of Vermont Avenue and Sunset Boulevard, as per KTLA. The guard, after being stabbed in the leg, had no choice but to fire their weapon in self-defense.
The security guard, employed by a security firm contracted by Metro, stumbled upon the trespasser, leading to an exchange where pepper spray was deployed before the stabbing ensued, KTLA reported. Found a block away was the suspect, believed to be in his 40s, on De Longpre and Vermont avenues. Officials pronounced him dead at the scene. He was discovered not breathing and unconscious in an entrance which police opened, intended for emergency access to the subway tunnels below.
According to KABC, the wounded guard was taken to the hospital and is reported to be in stable condition. The violent encounter is part of a troubling pattern for the transit agency, recently shook by a series of harrowing events, including a deadly stabbing at a Universal City Metro station and several bus drivers facing attacks.
CORRECTION: The Metro Board did not declare a state of public emergency. Rather, the board approved Metro’s use of emergency procurement designation for the bus operator retrofit barriers due to the sudden, unexpected increased severity of assaults on operators. Given the delay experienced in receiving the tempered glass over the past few months, staff recommended that the normal procurement processes be waived to accelerate installation of the barriers to protect the health and safety of our bus operators. The Board’s approval of the procurement enables Metro to immediately purchase supplies required to retrofit its current barriers with a fully enclosed tempered glass design, which is shatterproof and reduces glare, to more fully protect the health and safety of bus operators. The emergency procurement will enable Metro to install these bus barriers on our entire fleet of more than 2,000 buses by the end of 2024, instead of over the course of three years through the regular procurement process, per a representative of LA Metro
According to KABC, Police and paramedics were quick to respond to Tuesday's incident, with aerial footage capturing the active scene shortly after the confrontation came to its lethal end.
