KENT, Wash. — A man charged with assault and committing a hate crime against a Black woman who was riding on a King County Metro bus pleaded not guilty in court Monday.
The suspect, identified as Adan Hernandez-Mayoral, 22, in charging documents, is accused of an unprovoked attack against the victim after calling her racial slurs. He allegedly attempted to stab the woman multiple times, but a thick coat that she was wearing protected her from serious injury.
Bail was set at $250,000.
The victim was riding a King County Metro bus in the Kent area at around 7:45 p.m. on March 7, seated near the back, when the Hernandez-Mayoral and another man boarded and sat in the row behind her.
The victim told police that the suspect began making racist remarks about Black people and saying the n-word. The victim turned around to see who was making the racist comments, which is when the suspect focused his attention on her. The suspect told the victim she should go sit in the back and made comments referencing Rosa Parks. The victim heard the suspect spit but did not turn to see if he had aimed it at her.
After about 10 minutes, the victim went up to speak to the bus driver to request that he call 911 and let her off the bus. The suspect followed her and paced in the aisle, according to court documents. When the bus came to a stop, the doors opened and the suspect approached the victim to demand that she get off the bus. The suspect then allegedly grabbed the victim by the throat and attempted to pull her off the bus himself.
The victim tried to push the suspect away from her, but he was still able to pull her off the bus. The suspect began to punch the victim repeatedly in the face. In an attempt to defend herself, the victim began to punch the suspect. The man who was with the suspect on the bus got in between them, at which time Hernandez-Mayoral pulled out a knife and attempted to stab the victim "at least eight times," she reported to police.
The suspect and the other man fled the area headed southbound on foot.
Although the victim ended up not suffering any stab wounds thanks to the cushioning of her coat, she said at the time she really believed she was being stabbed because she could feel pain in the areas where the suspect was striking her.
Hernandez-Mayoral's next court date is April 8. Trial is set to begin May 20.