SEATTLE — A 15-year-old girl whose videotaped beating in the Seattle bus tunnel has drawn a national outcry has herself been charged in two earlier attacks.
The Seattle Times reported Wednesday that Aiesha Steward-Baker was given a deferred sentence last September in King County Juvenile Court after she pleaded guilty to attempted second-degree robbery for hitting a security guard at a Seattle market in January 2009. Court papers say she punched the man in the head after he stopped her friend from shoplifting.
The newspaper also says Steward-Baker is one of two girls charged in a May 23 attack on a 50-year-old woman in suburban Edmonds. Her public defender in that case, Frederick Moll, said Wednesday the girl plans to plead guilty Monday in juvenile court to second-degree robbery. Snohomish County Deputy Prosecutor John Stansell says the second girl in that case has already pleaded guilty to the same charge.
In recent days, Steward-Baker has appeared at a news conference called by another lawyer and on Monday appeared on ABC’s “Good Morning America” to discuss the Jan. 28 transit tunnel attack.
Meanwhile, Mayor Mike McGinn says more police officers will be assigned to patrol the downtown bus tunnel entrances, after surveillance video captured the assault as unarmed, private security officers looked on.
McGinn and King County Executive Dow Constantine announced plans to boost security at the tunnel on Wednesday.
Plans include having more King County sheriff’s deputies act as uniformed transit police inside the tunnel, and ensuring close communication between transit police and Seattle city police.
The contractor that employs the unarmed guards, Olympic Security Services Inc., has also instituted additional training for its workers.
Four young people have been arrested and charged in the Jan. 28 beating and robbery.
King County sheriff’s detectives are looking for a fifth person, a 17-year-old boy who has “Young Savage” tattooed on his forearms.
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