Metro guard shoots, kills man who stabbed him at Hollywood station, police say

A knife-wielding man was shot and killed after stabbing a security guard at a Hollywood Metro station Tuesday morning, authorities said.

Los Angeles Police Department officers responded about 9:10 a.m. to 1500 North Vermont Avenue to a report of a security guard being stabbed, according to Officer Kevin Terzes.

A man was found trespassing during a security sweep of the nonpublic area at the Vermont/Sunset station, according to a statement from Metro spokesperson Dave Sotero. A security guard and the man then got into an altercation on the platform, in which the guard used pepper spray and the man stabbed the guard in the leg.

The security guard then shot the man twice, according to LAPD Officer Tony Im. The man fled on foot to a local hospital in Hollywood, where he was pronounced dead. The security guard was also hospitalized in an undisclosed condition.

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Last week, hundreds of Metro drivers held a sick-out protest in response to the growing number of assaults on drivers. Dozens of bus routes were delayed as a result.

About 360 operators, or about 10% of drivers for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, called out sick, according to the agency. Train and bus operators have criticized Metro for not responding adequately to violence in recent weeks.

The agency recorded 168 assaults last year, including stabbings and being spat on.

The stabbing came just two days after a driver on an L.A. Department of Transportation DASH bus was pushed and punched in an altercation with a passenger. Afterward, the department said it would look into ways to provide more safeguards for drivers.

“The safety of passengers and drivers on our transit services is of paramount importance to LADOT,” the department said in a statement to KCBS-TV Channel 2. “LADOT is evaluating options to improve security, including strengthening existing barriers separating drivers and passengers.”