SOUTHLAND : Transient Stabs Beach Lifeguard
A Santa Monica beach lifeguard was accosted on his watchtower this morning by a transient who demanded money and stabbed him with a corkscrew when he refused, police said.
The lifeguard, Terry Hearst, 34, fell about 10 feet from the tower railing onto the sand as he tried to back away from the transient’s weapon, which left a three-inch gash on his chest, Lt. Al Bonner said.
The 12-year veteran lifeguard was treated at Santa Monica Hospital Medical Center and was undergoing X-rays to determine whether he suffered any back or neck injuries in the fall.
The transient, described only as an unshaven, barefoot white man in his early 30s, escaped.
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