Md. Man Arrested for Stabbing Teen Trans Girl in DC

A man from Maryland was charged with a hate crime after allegedly stabbing a transgender teen girl on a Metro train in Washington, D.C., according to WJLA-TV, the ABC-affiliate station in Washington, D.C.

Metro Transit Police were alerted to an assault in progress Wednesday and according to authorities, Reginald Anthony Klaiber, 24, had an altercation with an unnamed 15-year-old transgender girl before he allegedly stabbed her in the back.

Klaiber tried to escape but was apprehended by police who found a 3-and-a-half-inch folding knife at the scene.

Police say witnesses told them Klaiber made "bias-motivated remarks about the victim's transgender status immediately prior to the assault."

"Mistreating people just because they might not understand something ... it's sad, it's just sad to hear," witness Kia Lucas told WJLA-TV.

The victim was taken to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries. She is in stable condition, the news station reports.

The victim's friends are certain that she was targeted because she is a transgender girl.

"I just want justice," Jae-la White told WJLA-TV. "My friend is on the train getting stabbed by a man that's under the influence [of] something-just coming on the train, wanting to stab her."

According to Gay Star News, White also said, "He came to my friend and said you have red hair. My friend said ok, and then he said, 'Oh, you're a man!' Then he started bothering my friend."

The site also reports another friend of the victim pepper sprayed Klaiber's eyes and two friends picked up the teen.

If Klaiber was charged with assault with a deadly weapon and is "subject to a 1 � times enhancement under District of Columbia law," according to WJLA-TV. According to GSN, the suspect has a criminal history of assault and resisting arrest. He was arrested last month for carrying a concealed weapon.