Washington state to pay homeless criminal $250 per day over lack of mental health treatment

Washington state tax payers are on the hook to fork over $250 per day to a homeless prolific offender for each day he doesn’t get mental health treatment. He allegedly grabbed a 62-year-old woman and twice threw her down the stairs of a light rail station in Seattle.

Alexander Jay, 40, was arrested on March 3, following the attack at the Chinatown-International District light rail station located at South Jackson Street and 5th Avenue. That same day, Jay was also accused of stabbing a woman 10 times at a local bus stop, according to Fox News.

According to prosecutors, Jay has nearly two dozen prior convictions in the state dating back to 2000. Courts had also previously issued more than 15 bench warrants for Jay’s failure to appear at hearings.

According to police, Jay, who is homeless, and the victim traveled in the same light rail car but did not have any interactions on the train. According to charging documents from the office of the King County Prosecuting Attorney, Jay chased the victim as she walked up the stairs after getting off the light rail.

Security footage showed Jay grabbing the victim and throwing her down the stairs. According to law enforcement, the 62-year-old victim suffered three broken ribs and a broken clavicle, which required surgery.

According to King 5 News, a judge deemed Jay incompetent and ordered him to spend three months at an inpatient facility, but after over 100 days without being admitted, King County Superior Court Judge Johanna Bender found the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) in contempt of court for failing to get Jay into treatment.

Jay’s admission to a facility was previously deemed not appropriate due to the violent nature of the case and the department referred him to Western State Hospital, with an estimated admission date of mid-August.

The defense sought to have the case dismissed, stating that Jay’s due process rights were being violated because of the state’s delay in providing competency restoration treatment.

However, King County argued that dismissal was not appropriate for this case and the judge should deny the defense motion to dismiss the case.

Bender found that Jay’s due process rights were violated, but his motion to dismiss the case was denied. The judge then ordered the state to pay $250 per day until Jay is admitted for treatment. Payment began accruing for Washington state taxpayers on May 9.

As a result, Washington state taxpayers could end up paying $17,000 to Jay.