In November 2022, two dudes linked to some Metro safety thingy decided to beat up another dude at a station platform. A video clip, which The Times got last week, shows one of the workers getting ready to throw a punch at the man while his buddy in a black shirt that says “security” jumps in throwing fists. The man fights back, gets pushed down onto the Metro platform, and ends up on the tracks. He keeps trying to break free and throws punches until he finally gets let go. The two “community intervention specialists” — unarmed community peeps with experience dealing with at-risk folks and gang stuff — were hired to hang out with Metro’s “street teams” to chill things out and stop violence. It’s not clear who the third dude is.
Metro has been bragging about this big bucks safety program as the answer to their crime probs with a bunch of attacks going down in the rail and bus system, especially since folks ain’t really feeling the cops these days. But the incident in 2022 with the two guys and the recent drama with a co-founder of a community group linked to the community intervention specialist program has folks wondering if Metro’s plan is all good. In January, Metro decided to amp up the operation and gave a fat three-year contract worth nearly $25 million to the Lee Andrews Group, a PR firm, to handle Metro’s community intervention specialist program. The firm is also in charge of Metro’s street teams, which are like station greeters who hand out stuff, like PPE during the pandemic. It’s like a whole vibe, you know?
These community-based programs have been showing results, according to Metro, giving props to these teams for a “15% reduction in violent crimes per boarding systemwide from 2023 to 2024” and a drop in violence along the K Line. The Metro board told the Lee Andrews Group to keep working with community organizations to tackle violence by sending specialists to “hot spots” all over the system. One of these groups was Developing Options, founded by Eugene “Big U” Henley, who went from being a gang member to a community advocate. But then he got hit with federal charges in March, including fraud and running a racketeering thing. Developing Options got about $2 million and dipped from the Metro program on March 25, right after news came out about their leadership issues. Henley hasn’t been available for comment.
Another group subcontracted by the Lee Andrews Group was Able Solutions — the group involved in that video. Since 2022, they’ve gotten over $3.2 million for their work with Metro. Even though the dudes in the video got booted from the system and aren’t connected with Metro anymore, the agency says Able Solutions is still in the mix. They haven’t said anything in response to requests for comment.
