Two assault charges were filed Wednesday against a 14-year-old Renton boy in the attack early Saturday morning that left a Metro bus driver unconscious, according to the King County Prosecutor’s Office.
The teen, a freshman at Renton High School, was charged with second-degree and third-degree assault. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
“Any assault on a bus driver is a very serious matter,” said King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg. “In addition to the harm to the bus driver, the passengers, other motorists and pedestrians are all put at risk when a driver is attacked.”
Based on the victim’s injuries, the maximum charge allowed is second-degree assault, according to the Prosecutor’s Office. Also, because of his age, lack of criminal history and other factors, he was not charged as an adult.
However, prosecutors will request a sentence above the standard range on the assault charge based on the seriousness of the offense and the risk to community safety.
The Renton Reporter is not naming the teen because he is being charged as a juvenile.
The standard sentence range in Juvenile Court for second-degree assault is 15 to 36 weeks in detention, but prosecutors will recommend a sentence of more than a year of incarceration if the defendant is convicted, according to the Prosecutor’s Office.
Two other boys, ages 16 and 17, were charged with first-degree malicious mischief for breaking windows on the back door of the bus and damaging the door frame. Their cases will remain in Juvenile Court where they each face a maximum sentence of up to 30 days in detention.
Two of the defendants remain in custody. The 16-year-old charged with malicious mischief is currently out of custody on electronic home monitoring. The two pleaded not guilty as well at an arraignment Thursday.
The 56-year-old bus driver was hospitalized at Valley Medical Center in Renton for treatment of her injuries. She was released and is resting at her Seattle home.
King County Executive Dow Constantine in a statement Monday condemned what he called a “brutal” assault and has asked Metro Transit to do its own review to determine how to improve the safety of the transit system.
“This was a senseless act of violence and one we hope will result in convictions for those who committed this violent crime,” he said.
He said the county will closely watch how the criminal cases unfold against the three defendants.
“I hope the criminal justice system sends a strong message that criminals found guilty of a felony assault such as this are dealt with to the fullest extent of the law,” he said.
The incident occurred just after midnight Saturday morning, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The Route 124 bus stopped in Tukwila at South 144th Street and International Boulevard to let off passengers. Seven or eight youths gathered at the back door but only two got off before the doors closed. At least some of the group went to the front of the bus and the driver was punched in the head several times, knocking her unconscious, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Meanwhile, two suspects kicked and hit the rear door of the bus, breaking glass and bending the door frame. All suspects then ran off.
A Tukwila K-9 dog tracked the group to a house in the 13700 block of 45th Avenue South. Eight people were detained. Eventually, witnesses from the bus identified the three people booked into the Youth Center who were directly involved in the altercation, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
A passenger called 911 from the bus after the assault. As the Sheriff’s Office and Tukwila Police headed for the bus, two police cars collided, one from each agency. The collision occurred at South 148th Street and International Blvd.
The Tukwila officer was treated at the scene. The sheriff’s deputy, assigned to the City of SeaTac Police, was taken to Valley Medical Center, where he was treated and released.
Constantine said in his statement that public and employee safety is Metro Transit’s top priority. Assaults against bus drivers have dropped by 19.3 percent in the past year, he said.
The reduction is due to the expansion of Metro’s Transit Police Unit over the past several years. The unit has 68 commissioned officers who patrol Metro Transit’s facilities, including the Renton Transit Center.
“As we have all witnessed in recent weeks, this is a community that will not stand by and condone senseless crimes against public servants who are so dedicated to doing their jobs each and every day,” Constantine said in the statement.
