MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — A local television news anchor was assaulted on Tuesday morning at a light rail train station in Minneapolis.
KSTP-TV anchor Matt Belanger was struck near the eye with a rock or a small piece of concrete at the Nicollet Mall station, at about 8:50 a.m., according to KSTP management. He was waiting for a green line train to work. The attack appears to have been random and unprovoked, and Belanger was treated at Hennepin Healthcare for an injury to his left eye. KSTP confirmed that he is recovering at home and is expected to make a full recovery.
AND:
Metro Transit Police say a video posted on social media showing a young man assaulting an older Asian American woman occurred at a Green Line station in St. Paul early Monday morning. In the video, two young men appear to be taunting the woman, who is alone. Suddenly, one of the young men leaps into the air and kicks the woman in the face. The men laugh, and one can be seen running away as the video ends.
Three 15-year-old boys were arrested and charged with aiding and abetting both gross misdemeanor harassment with intent to injure and fifth-degree misdemeanor assault in connection with the case.
Of course, here in Portland, two men were murdered and a third had his throat slashed while riding one of our wonderful light rail "trains" last year. Transit agencies should abandon the pretense of collecting fares, and just dispense insurance policies at their little ticket kiosks.
Over to the north:
Ridership has dropped by three-quarters on King County Metro services countywide amid the COVID-19 pandemic. King County Metro joined 14 other major transit agencies from across the country in signing a letter to Congress asking for more funding.
Kind of amazing, since that's state-of-the-art 19th-century technology....
