The L.A. Metro system’s safety issues aren’t going away.
A boy was stabbed while onboard a Metro bus in Glendale and two hours later, a woman was stabbed at a Metro station in South L.A. On Tuesday afternoon, a man was robbed and assaulted while onboard a Metro bus in Encino.
L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who serves on the Metro Board, told L.A.’s Morning News changes are needed.
“I am very much focused on bringing law enforcement back to the table. For years, Metro has struggled with how we address safety on our lines, and I feel we’ve taken the wrong approach,” she said.
The approach Barger referred to is the use of Metro ambassadors as a replacement for a more robust law enforcement presence.
“When I talk to ambassadors, they tell me that law enforcement is an important partner with them in order for them to do their job,” she said. “ We need to undo what was done and that is basically changing the policies as it relates to law enforcement's role on our transit system and let them get back to being a deterrent and then capturing those that are committing the crimes.”
Barger said it’s time to get back to basics and let law enforcement do their job.
“My goal is not to criminalize. My goal is to make it safe for those riding our transit system, that are transit dependent, but also those that have a choice that can actually begin to take a system that is safe,” she said.
She added that she’s spoken with the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, LAPD, and the Long Beach Police Department about what needs to be done to increase safety measures.
“[The sheriff’s department] are working on this and they have with their leads to find out what resources are needed, and I have a feeling that what it's going to come down to is additional resources,” she said. “ And we're gonna have to have that debate at the board meeting. But at the end of the day, the facts stand. I mean, we had a woman murdered. We had an elderly woman stabbed in an elevator. We've had a young man robbed and I'm sure there are many others that are not coming forward that we have to address this. We can't put our heads in the sand.”
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass, who chairs the Metro Board, announced Wednesday afternoon that she's drafting a plan to put more police on public transit.
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