Latest news with #CurtisBakerSpence
CTV News
28-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
Council approves $15-million plan to better protect bus drivers
Nearly two weeks after a Calgary bus driver was beaten and stabbed, city councillors unanimously approved a motion to spend millions of dollars to upgrade barriers to better protect transit operators. Nearly two weeks after a Calgary bus driver was beaten and stabbed, city councillors unanimously approved a motion to spend millions of dollars to upgrade barriers to better protect transit operators. Training and safety protocols will also be reviewed. Two men face charges after a bus driver was assaulted in the early morning hours of May 14. Darryl Flett, 22, and Curtis Baker Spence, 20, are each charged with aggravated assault in relation to the attack. According to the union representing transit workers, the victim is now out of hospital, but 'the road to recovery is going to be incredibly long,' said Mike Mahar with the Amalgamated Transit Union. 'He is bedridden and he gets up and every day he has to go for medical treatments for his hands and for all the wounds on his head,' Mahar added. As part of a discussion about the future of Calgary Transit, councillors voted in favour of recommending spending up to $15 million on a plan that includes installing upgraded barriers for drivers. The city will also install safety signage to alert people to the consequences of harassing or assaulting drivers. Although assaults are rare, Mahar says verbal abuse and threats against transit operators happen nearly every day. The city will also review transit safety and training practices on trains and buses. 'I think it's fantastic. I think that getting it done right now, while the window is there, is so essential,' said Mahar. The spending ask will be added to the city's high-priority requests at next month's Strategic Council Meeting.
CBC
15-05-2025
- CBC
2 suspects charged after Calgary bus driver assaulted, police say
Police have charged two men suspected in an assault on a Calgary bus driver that sent him to hospital in life-threatening condition early Wednesday morning. The driver was assaulted while operating a bus in the area of Falconridge Boulevard and Castleridge Boulevard at 1:12 a.m., according to police. Investigators believe the two men attacked the bus operator when he refused their request to deviate from the designated bus route. The bus driver suffered significant injuries and was taken to hospital in life-threatening condition. His condition has since been reassessed as stable. According to police, one bus passenger tried to intervene during the attack and did not sustain serious injuries. Police say investigators were able to get a physical description of the suspects with the help of CCTV footage. At about 8 a.m. on Wednesday, officers located two men in the Falconridge area matching those descriptions and arrested them. Darryl Flett, 22, has now been charged with one count of aggravated assault, one count of robbery and one count of failing to comply with a court order. Curtis Baker Spence, 20, is charged with one count of aggravated assault, one count of robbery and four counts of failing to comply with a court order. Both men are set to appear in court on May 16.
