Some guards shift in tunnel policy change

Olympic Security is shuffling a few employees as it prepares for a new policy that allows guards to intervene to break up fights in the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel rather than merely "observe and report" as currently trained.

The change is in response to last month's beating inside the tunnel of a 15-year-old girl by another girl, which was captured on video and made national headlines.

During the fight, three Olympic guards stood by watching, but did not intervene as the victim was kicked six times in the head.

Mark Vinson, president of Olympic Security, said Monday that employees last week received three hours of training in verbally defusing arguments, but it's not yet determined how much self-defense training they'll get.

He said one guard who didn't want to have to intervene in fights is being reassigned, while another cited religious reasons for transferring. It's not clear when a new policy will take effect.

"We don't want to take our security officers and jeopardize their safety," Vinson told the Seattle City Council on Monday. "We're trying to select the right people for the tunnel so they can make that decision."

Vinson, along with leaders from the Seattle Police Department, King County Sheriff's Office, King County Metro and Sound Transit, met with the City Council to answer questions about their response to the Jan. 28 attack.

The infamous video clip showed Aiesha Steward-Baker being kicked in the head after a fight at Westlake Station. Five people have been arrested in connection with the assault and robbery.

The transit and law-enforcement leaders Monday reassured City Council members and emphasized the need to restore public confidence.

Out of 10 million riders using the five tunnel stations last year, there were four aggravated assaults, four misdemeanor assaults, four thefts, three threats reported and two acts of lewd conduct, said King County sheriff's Maj. Dave Jutilla, chief of the Metro Transit Police.

Added Nick Metz, Seattle police acting deputy chief, "The tunnel, and the area surrounding the tunnel, is a safe place. There is no argument that the city of Seattle is one of the safest downtowns in the country."

Kevin Desmond, Metro general manager, said he's contacted the American Public Transit Association to learn more about how other U.S. transit systems deter crime.

Already, Seattle police deploy four walking officers, two bicycle squads and up to nine traffic officers in the blocks surrounding Westlake Station, said Metz. Two transit officers from the sheriff's office typically patrol the tunnel.

Still, it took five to six minutes for county transit police to arrive after the assault.

Councilmember Nick Licata wasn't satisfied.

"In Seattle, if we put in a call for that type of activity, we need three minutes, or better, response," he said.

Communications technology is a factor in response time. Cellphones generally don't work in the tunnel, so the unarmed guards call the Metro tunnel control center in Sodo by radio, where a dispatcher calls law enforcement.

In an interview after the session, Jutilla said that if transit police can't arrive in about five minutes, local police will respond.

Asked if a one- to two-minute goal is realistic, he said, "The goal is, for any priority call, as quick as possible."

Licata said later his questions aren't answered yet. "The crux of the issue is response time," he said. "The bottom line is, we should be able to get police officers — county or city — there within two minutes."

The sheriff's office recently assigned at least one armed officer to each tunnel stop.

Councilmember Bruce Harrell asked if city police need more training, and if they should have walked the girl (whose family he knows) to her bus stop, after she complained that a group of young people wanted to steal her iPod.

Metz noted that officers on the street see maybe nine dust-ups a day between groups, and usually tell them to go their separate ways.

Mike Lindblom: 206-515-5631 or mlindblom@seattletimes.com