Kansas City woman charged in stabbing of man during fight on RideKC bus: Court records
A Kansas City woman accused of stabbing a man three times during a fight on a Kansas City bus has been charged with assault, court records show.
Shaunte L. Washington, 31, faces charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action for her role in the Monday afternoon stabbing. Police also identified a second suspect, who has not yet been charged.
The stabbing took place on a RideKC bus around 1:30 p.m. Monday in the Midtown neighborhood of Kansas City, near 31st Street and Troost Avenue, The Star previously reported.
The victim suffered stab wounds to both thighs and a knife wound to the back of his arm, according to court records. One of the stab wounds damaged his femoral artery.
The stabbing victim, who was not named in court documents, told officers that he got involved after Washington got into an argument with another female rider. Washington started cursing at the rider, prompting the victim to intervene so that Washington would not physically assault her, court documents show.
The second suspect then stepped in, saying he wasn’t going to let the victim lay a hand on Washington, at which point all four riders started arguing.
As the fight escalated, the victim told police that Washington pulled out a knife and threatened to kill the female rider, according to court documents. Hearing this, the victim pulled out a baton and the unnamed suspect began punching him, court documents read.
At the same time, he said Washington stabbed him in both thighs and the back of the arm.
Another witness told police that Washington also hit the victim several times with his own baton, according to court documents.
After the stabbing, a Kansas City Area Transportation Authority security officer got on the bus and ordered Washington at gunpoint to drop her weapons, according to court documents. She dropped the baton but would not give up the knife, court documents read.
When Kansas City police officers responded to the bus, they found that the security officer had handcuffed Washington to a railing inside the bus, according to court documents.
The victim and the second suspect were both transported to an area hospital, The Star reported.
The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority declined to comment on the stabbing. The Kansas City Police Department initially classified the incident as an aggravated assault, Capt. Jake Becchina, a KCPD spokesperson, said Monday.
Washington alleged the other woman involved in the fight had pointed a gun at her during the altercation, but this was not consistent with surveillance video footage reviewed by police, according to court documents.
Washington previously faced property damage charges related to two separate incidents in December 2023 and January 2024, as well as harassment charges filed in December and assault charges filed in 2017, according to court records.
Washington is being held under house arrest with a $750,000 bond, according to court records. She has also been ordered not to ride any more public buses in Kansas City.
Her first court date has not yet been set.
