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Crime Jul 12, 2022
Kimberly Glass in 2012. | Photo courtesy of Grzegorz Jereczek/Wikipedia
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Criminal proceedings were suspended Tuesday after doubt was declared about the mental competency of a man charged with an alleged unprovoked attack on an Olympic silver medal-winning volleyball player.
Semeon Tesfamariam, 51, was ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation shortly after being charged with a felony count of assault with a deadly weapon against Kim Glass.
The charge includes allegations that the victim suffered great bodily injury and that the defendant has a prior conviction for assault with a deadly weapon.
In a video posted on Instagram, Glass discussed the attack, which left her with a black eye and bruises last Friday.
The 37-year-old Glass said she had lunch with a friend and while they were saying goodbye, “this homeless man ran up. He had something in his hand … and he just like looked at me … and as I turned to go tell my friend I think something’s, like, wrong with him and I think he’s going to hit your car … before I knew it, a big metal bolt, like pipe, hit me.”
Glass said people in the area who saw the attack subdued the assailant and held him until police arrived.
Los Angeles police said the attack occurred around 2:30 p.m. Friday at Olive and Eighth streets. The suspect was identified as Tesfamariam, who was booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, police said.
Glass said she does not believe her vision will be impacted long-term, noting she “got really great stitching from the doctor.” She said she had multiple fractures around her eye.
In a statement, District Attorney George Gascón called it “a brutal, unprovoked attack.”
“Mr. Tesfamariam has a troubling history of attacking apparently random people with dangerous weapons,” the county’s top prosecutor said. “His behavior appears to have escalated with time.”
His first felony assault occurred in 2018 and the second in 2019, according to the District Attorney’s Office, which noted that he was initially sentenced to probation and later was sentenced to state prison and was on parole at the time.
The latest attack involved a 10-inch metal bolt that was thrown at Glass’ face, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Tesfamariam was ordered to remain jailed without bail, with an Aug. 12 status hearing set in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom regarding his mental competence.
Updated July 12, 2022, 9:22 p.m.
