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Olympian Kim Glass, who was randomly attacked in Los Angeles by a man with a metal bolt last week, spoke out about the incident on Tuesday evening after the suspect was charged, saying that she hopes he gets the full 11-year prison sentence he is facing.
“The point is guys, he has assaulted many people before me and he’s violated probation and he’s violated paroles doing the same thing,” Glass sad in a video posted on her Instagram, noting that his other victims have been women.
“You guys are only hearing about me because I’m an Olympian,” she continued. “And you guys haven’t heard from the other victims of the other attacks that have been happening, repeatedly happening in this city, so they need to be vindicated and we can’t drop the ball on this. We can’t. Things have to change.”
The suspected attacker, 51-year-old Semeon Tesfamariam, is accused of randomly throwing a 10-inch metal bolt at Glass’s face while she was walking near a homeless camp in Los Angeles.
He was previously convicted of felony assaults in 2018 and 2019, but was out on parole when he allegedly attacked Glass.
Bystanders witnessed the assault and detained Tesfamariam until police arrived. He was charged with assault with a deadly weapon on Tuesday and is now being held without bail, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said.
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Tesfamariam’s arraignment was scheduled for Tuesday but doubts were raised about his competency to stand trial, so a new hearing was set for Aug. 12.
“Clearly he’s not mentally well and I do feel for him a lot. At the same time, feeling for somebody and holding them accountable doesn’t have to be mutually exclusive,” Glass said Tuesday evening on Instagram.
U.S. volleyball player Kim Glass arrives for the 27th Anniversary Sports Spectacular benefiting Cedars-Sinai Medical Genetics Institute at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Los Angeles, California May 20, 2012.
(REUTERS/Bret Hartman)
“He needs to be off the streets and I hope that he gets the full 11 years and then some, and I hope that while he’s doing it, he gets help.”
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Gascón, who has faced scrutiny for reforms he put in place after being elected as district attorney in 2020, called it a “brutal, unprovoked attack.”
Violent crime is up 8.2% so far this year, with aggravated assaults jumping 5%, according to LAPD data.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon speaks at a press conference, December 8, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.
(ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
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Those elevated crime levels have driven a recall campaign against Gascón, which recently gathered enough signatures to put the recall question on the ballot in November.
“The more that we keep letting this issue go on and on and on, and they keep getting out and they are on the streets and we know that they are not healthy or mentally well and we’re putting our citizens, our healthcare workers, our cops, everyone in harm’s way,” Glass said. “We’re letting our society down.”
Fox News’s Jonathan Moore contributed to this report.
