St. Paul man sentenced to probation in attack on transgender woman

A St. Paul man who plead guilty to assaulting a transgender woman in a light rail station in February was sentenced on Wednesday morning.

23-year-old Kevin Dewayne York was sentenced for one count of third-degree assault to 18 months in prison, but the sentence was stayed for three years, during which time he will serve probation. York also received a sentence of 99 days in jail but had credit for 99 days served.

He must also stay away from the victim and stay at least three blocks away from all light rail stations and trains.

York plead guilty to one count of third-degree assault in May in exchange for the dismissal of a count of first-degree aggravated robbery.

RELATED: 2 men accused of beating transgender woman at Minneapolis light rail station

On the morning of Feb. 27, officers with the Metro Transit Police were called to the Lake Street Blue Line station in Minneapolis on a report of an assault, according to court records.

Officers found the victim bruised and bleeding with bumps on her forehead and a serious injury to the back of her head, the complaint states. She said, “They hit me,” and otherwise struggled to put coherent sentences together. She was taken to the hospital, where a CT scan showed she had suffered a broken rib and internal bleeding in her head.

The latest update on the victim reported her to be severely injured but in stable condition.

Surveillance footage showed three suspects beating the woman, pushing her down the stairs and continuing to assault her, the complaint states. Two of those suspects boarded a southbound train and exited at the VA Medical Center Station, where police met them and took them into custody.

York and Keaten James Morris, 19, were charged with one count each of first-degree aggravated robbery and third-degree assault at the time of the incident, court records show.

York told police the victim was “slashing at people,” possibly with a box cutter, according to the complaint.