Witness Describes Harrowing Scene During South Hayward BART Train Stabbing
FREMONT (KPIX) -- The woman who witnessed the fatal stabbing on a BART train earlier this week and desperately tried to save the victim's life on Friday recounted the tragic scene.
When 22-year-old Sophia Humphrey of Fremont got into a BART elevator Tuesday afternoon in San Leandro, a shoeless Jermaine Brim joined her.
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"So had I my phone. I was using the reflection of the video I was watching to keep an eye on him," remembered Humphrey.
When she boarded the Warm Springs-bound train, she got into a different car to avoid Brim, only to have him eventually walk into her car.
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Before long, the incident that led to the fight and fatal stabbing began.
"Made a beeline for the homeless gentleman in the middle of the train and took one of his shoes," said Humphrey. "That's when Mr. Tyrone got up and approached and stopped him basically and said, 'Don't take his shoes. It's not okay to steal from other people.'"
She says brim then left and then came back and began attacking Oliver "Tyrone" Williams as another homeless man tried to break it up.
"They were wrestling with the knife for a while before the attacker managed to get hold of it and stab Mr. Tyrone multiple times," she said.
Humphrey was already in communication with emergency services via a texting app for the deaf at that point. She said Brim exited the train and ran when they got to South Hayward station.
That was when the certified nurse's assistant grabbed medical gloves from her backpack, pulled herself out of her wheelchair and tried to help while she waited for paramedics to arrive.
"I applied as much pressure as I could," said Humphrey.
She talked to Williams, trying to comfort him and keep him conscious even though she couldn't hear him respond.
"One of the things people fear is dying alone. I was glad I was able to be there for him," said Humphrey.
Humphrey stayed with Williams until paramedics arrived on scene. She felt with a quicker response, Williams might have had a chance to live.
"If it had been feasible for emergency services to arrive within minutes rather than several minutes, if they could get a blood transfusion into him or any type of fluids, he might have survived," said Humphrey.
The 39-year-old Brim was arraigned Thursday on the murder charge and four other felony counts for the fatal stabbing of Williams.
