On Tuesday, February 24th, just a little after 4:30 pm, police arrived on scene regarding a call about a shooting on Burnett Ave South. Police presume that one man pulled out the gun and shot another man in the abdomen. The victim has been said to be in critical condition. The 17 year old shooter fled on one of the King County buses and went a mile north. A witness said they saw him get on the Metro bus and the radio center was contacted. He was taken off of the bus immediately after the bus driver found out he wasn’t supposed to be on the bus, according to ATU Local 587 President Greg Woodfill. Woodfill also told KIRO that he’s “fed up” that another shooting put their bus operators at risk, and he also said, “It’s stressful to come to work every day and not know whether you’re going to be involved with one of these.”
The police retrieved the suspect’s gun shortly after he was arrested, and he is being held in a Juvenile Detention Center for first-degree assault and unlawful possession of a firearm. Hull said there might have been “an altercation” that had led to the shooting and that one person “possibly flashed a weapon and shot another.” The age of the victim is not available, but he was taken to the hospital. He was said to be in critical condition, according to spokesperson Susan Gregg. The Sheriff’s office will investigate the shooting with King County Metro’s transit police. Casey McNerthney, a spokesperson for the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, said according to prosecutors, they expect to get a case referral from investigators and after will make a charging decision. Woodfill also stated, “Our operators, a lot of them are traumatized. They’ve dealt with years of COVID, fentanyl, mental health issues, homelessness issues. They aren’t interested in talk. They want to see some action.”
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