District of Columbia to ban violent offenders from municipal transit system

First offenders will be banned for 45 days, second offenders for 90 days, and third offenders for one year.

Published: March 28, 2025 8:21am

Updated: March 28, 2025 1:26pm

The Washington D.C.-area metro system is temporarily banning people who commit assaults or sex offenses while riding on its trains and buses.

The Metro board of directors voted Thursday to ban individuals who assault metro workers, passengers and others within the system.

First offenders will be banned for 45 days, second offenders for 90 days, and third offenders for one year, according to the NBC Washington news outlet. Enforcement will start June 2.

“We need a tool beyond the tools we have today," Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority General Manager and CEO Randy Clarke said during a board meeting last month. "I personally have run into people on the system, I get e-mails from women who have been victimized. It’s just a horrible experience, and it's preventable if we can keep people off the system."