Court documents provide new details of hammer attack at Beacon Hill light rail station

New details in charging documents obtained by KIRO 7 TV provide more information about a hammer attack at Beacon Hill light rail station, including that the man charged with the assault threatened to kill the victim.

The man, 39-year-old Richard Aaron Gordon, struck two people in the head with a hammer, injuring them both, Sept. 28 in the underground passenger lobby of Sound Transit’s Beacon Hill Station.

The victims were a man and a woman in their 60s. Both victims were treated at the scene for head injuries by the Seattle Fire Department and transported to Harborview Medical Center, where they are in stable condition, SPD reported. The attack appeared to have been unprovoked. Patrol officers and transit security guards are reported to have a clear description of the assailant, who is still on the loose as of approximately 5:40 p.m.

According to KIRO 7, Gordon told the woman he would kill her.

Documents also say that this is not Gordon’s first violent threat, including when he threatened his ex-boyfriend with a hammer multiple times.

Court documents claim that Gordon called and reported that the staff at Bailey-Boushay House, an inpatient long-term care facility, were trying to kill him and that he had a “little crowbar thing.” Later that month, he called again, threatening to assault the staff.

Seattle Police has released photos and video of the hammer attack at the Beacon Hill light rail station at the end of September.

SPD has released photos and video of the suspect in last week’s assault with a hammer at the Beacon Hill light rail station. Anyone with information about the attack or the suspect should call the Violent Crimes Tip Line at 206-233-5000. https://t.co/WHxas2D1zg

— Seattle Police Dept. (@SeattlePD) October 3, 2023

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This incident follows a slew of violent attacks on Sound Transit stations over the summer, including a man stabbing another passenger 18 times at a light-rail train near Othello Station in July. It was described as another attack without provocation.

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A Sound Transit station in SODO also had a violent incident when someone bludgeoned another man in the head with a rock July 28.

Sound Transit has made efforts to hire more guards this year for its stations, but only 50 of 89 budgeted transit police posts were filled as of mid-2023, according to The Seattle Times.

Julie Timm, the Sound Transit CEO, spoke with board members hours before the hammer incident and said she intends to launch regular online and public meeting updates this fall that focus on security.

KIRO 7 contributed to this report