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Tuesday, July 30, 2013 5:00:00 PM
Minnesota Public Radio reports on a new state law that classifies certain assaults against bus and train operators as gross misdemeanors, punishable by up to a year in prison and a $3,000 fine – previously the penalty was up to 90 days in a prison and a $1,000 fine.
Metro Transit officials successfully advocated for the stiffer penalties in the last legislative session, arguing such assaults put both operators and the public at risk.
Metro Transit Police Chief John Harrington is among those who pushed the law change. Speaking to MPR, he said he hoped it would send a message that "assaulting drivers is taken very seriously."
> MPR's report on the new operator assault law
> AP: New Minnesota law ups penalty for bus driver assaults
> Metro Transit's Code of Conduct