Woman who allegedly threw urine at Metrobus driver a no-show in court, prompting arrest warrant

Metro says surveillance video shows a woman splashing a cup filled with urine at a Metrobus driver on the X2 line on Aug. 26 in Northeast Washington. (Video: Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority – Metro)

A judge issued an arrest warrant Thursday for a Southeast Washington woman after she failed to appear in D.C. Superior Court for allegedly throwing a cup full of urine on a Metrobus driver who told her to “Have a nice day.”

Opal L. Brown, 38, was arrested last month on an assault charge after she allegedly urinated in a cup and later flung its contents at an X2 bus driver as she exited the bus near the intersection of Benning Road and Minnesota Avenue.

Police arrested her at L’Enfant Plaza station on Aug. 30. At an arraignment a day later, Brown pleaded not guilty to a charge of misdemeanor simple assault. She was released on her own recognizance.

Brown failed to appear at her Thursday morning status hearing, however — according to online court records — prompting Judge Patricia A. Broderick to issue a warrant for her arrest by early afternoon. Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said that when Brown’s name was called at the hearing, her attorney explained she wasn’t present because of car trouble and her inability to “use Metro” because of a stay-away order stemming from the alleged assault.

A prosecuting attorney pointed out, however, that Brown was ordered to stay off the X2 bus only. Stessel said the judge gave Brown’s attorney a 1 p.m. deadline for her client to appear in court. When she failed to show up by then, the judge issued an arrest warrant.

Metro Transit Police circulated a “WANTED” photo of Brown on Thursday night. Stessel said the Transit Police warrant squad was handling the case.

WANTED by MTPD - Opal L. Brown, 38, of DC - Failure to Appear (Bench Warrant) - Have info? Call (301) 955-5000 or text "MyMTPD" #wmata pic.twitter.com/uCiKyIPJ2x

— Metro Transit Police (@MetroTransitPD) September 28, 2017

According to police, Brown said she threw the urine on the bus driver because she “hates Metro.” The incident left the bus driver shaken, with co-workers explaining she hadn’t returned to work in the immediate aftermath and feared she had contracted a disease or infection. The driver was hospitalized to clean up and be “decontaminated,” Metro said.

The incident, which was captured on video, prompted an outcry among members of Metro’s largest union, who said the agency has done too little to protect its workers — including bus drivers and rail station managers — from passenger assaults. Metro and the union have pushed for harsher penalties for offenders in operator assaults.

An earlier report captured how last month’s urine-throwing incident unfolded:

According to Metro spokeswoman Sherri Ly, the passenger was getting off the bus when the operator told her, “Have a nice day.”

“Are you talking to me?” the passenger responded, according to Metro.

“Yes,” the bus operator said.

And that, Metro says, is when the rider lashed out.

Metro’s narrative — that the rider threw her cup of urine after the driver told her to “Have a nice day” — was confirmed when Brown spoke with NBC4 and said she didn’t appreciate the tone in which the driver delivered the greeting.

“She said ‘have a nice day’ all sarcastically,” Brown told the station. “She could have been more courteous.”

Brown’s whereabouts could not be discerned Thursday afternoon. A call to her attorney was not immediately returned.

This post has been updated.