PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – On average, more than 1 million people ride TriMet around the Portland metro area every week. For the most part, their rides run smoothly and riders make it to their destinations safely.
However, there are some dangerous situations that have occurred in recent years. In 2017, there was the deadly MAX train stabbing. In 2022, TriMet’s union said operator assaults were on the rise, and in January 2023, the public transit service issued its second lifetime ban to Koryn Kraemer – a man accused of chewing an elderly man’s ear off at a MAX platform.
So, what does it take to be banned from riding TriMet?
Long-term exclusions were added to TriMet’s code in September 2017. The rule allows the general manager to ban someone from using TriMet’s services for anywhere from 6 months to the rest of their life, under specific circumstances.
The long-term exclusions can only be issued to people who have committed “a serious physical offense” against another person on the TriMet system. The serious physical offense must be classified as either a Class A misdemeanor or a felony against another person under Oregon law.
More recently, in February 2022, TriMet announced that it updated its code so that the general manager can also issue longer exclusions against anyone caught spitting or propelling bodily fluids onto an employee.
When TriMet made the announcement, General Manager Sam Desue Jr. said, “Most riders treat our operators and other frontline employees with respect, but those who don’t should lose the privilege to use our transit system.”
In January 2023, the TriMet code was updated again to allow Desue to issue bans of up to 2 years to people who disrupt the safety and order of the transit system three or more times within a 90-day period.
“Long-term exclusions strengthen TriMet’s ability to help keep our riders and employees safe, by holding people accountable for inappropriate, threatening or dangerous behavior on our property and vehicles,” TriMet said in a news release issued Jan. 25.
The agency said changes to its exclusion rules intend to make it safer to work on and ride the transit system.
Anyone issued a long-term exclusion is allowed to contest it and can appeal the exclusion annually if they’d like to show changed behavior or rehabilitation.
Kraemer, the 25-year-old man who received the most recent lifetime ban, has not been convicted. He is charged with second-degree assault and is being held at the Oregon State Hospital. He has a fitness to proceed hearing scheduled for Feb. 14 to determine if he is capable of moving forward with criminal proceedings.
The only other person who’s received a lifetime ban from TriMet is Jared Walter, a man who in September 2021 was sentenced to nearly 2 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to taking a picture of a woman inside a bar’s bathroom. Walter was released from prison early for good behavior on Friday, Feb. 10.
Prior to his 2021 conviction, Walter served time for sexually assaulting various women over a number of years. He’s known in the Portland metro area for chopping off and gluing the hair of two women while on public transportation. He was sentenced to serve nearly one year in jail for those crimes.
TriMet issued a lifetime ban against Walter in April 2019.
On Jan. 25, 2023, TriMet issued two other long-term exclusions to other people. Brianna Workman, 32, is banned from TriMet for the next 5 years. Worman is suspected of pushing a child onto the MAX tracks at the Gateway Transit Center on Dec. 26, 2022. The incident was caught on TriMet security cameras.
Workman faces charges of first-degree attempted assault, third-degree assault, interfering with public transportation, second-degree disorderly conduct, and recklessly endangering another person.
Dustin Rasmussen was also banned for 5 years. The 22-year-old man admitted to striking a transit security officer with bicycle handlebars on March 24, 2022, TriMet said. Rasmussen was charged with second-degree assault, unlawful use of a weapon, and other charges.