‘I didn't expect to have my face broken': San Diego trolley attack victim shares story

An East San Diego County man says he'll never set foot on a trolley again after he suffered multiple facial fractures in an attack by a belligerent passenger.

"I knew there were sketchy people and it wasn’t, like, the safest thing to do, but I never expected to pretty much have my face broken," Logan Nelson said.

Still with bruising and swelling on his face, Nelson, who is living with his aunt in Santee while he completes his dental technician training, shared his account of the attack. It's likely that his schooling helped him understand the complexity and severity of his injuries.

"A couple orbital fractures, a broken nose and a few fractures of my maxilla," Nelson said running through the list of his injuries. He hit me right here [in the head], then he hit me right here [in the head] again. Although this one did the most damage."

Nelson was on his ride home when a man seated across from him was yelling profanities while on his cell phone. An on-trolley security guard warned the passenger to keep quiet, and he asked the guard who he was bothering. Nelson spoke up.

He says running into passengers like the one who attacked him is common.

"[They're] tweaked out, be super loud, violent, or people that would yell at kids and that type of stuff," he said.

At the next stop, the passenger stayed on but the security guard got off. Then the man punched Nelson. Nelson said he used a stun device that doubles as a flashlight to defend himself, bringing the passenger to the ground. The man got up and hit Nelson with a heavy water bottle.

"A water bottle to the face, a metal off-brand Kirkland hydro flask," Nelson said describing the bottle.

He said the next thing he remembers is someone helping him off the trolley at the Lemon Grove Depot. An ambulance took him to a nearby hospital from there.

Violence on trolleys is on the rise, according to MTS statistics. There were 48 aggravated assaults reported to the San Diego police in 2021. The next year it was 82, but not all of them reported to police. In an MTS survey, riders said that safety is their top concern.

MTS spokesperson Mark Olson said they are listening. The board recently approved the hiring of 34 new security officers for a total of 90. There are another 200 members of the private security company hired to help.

Nelson's aunt said the security guard on the trolley could've done more to keep Nelson safe.

"The gentleman was not escorted off the trolley, so I feel like this 100% could have been prevented," Heather Kacsure said. “They need to take a good hard look at how they are spending their money and the security company firm that they’ve hired."

Nelson said he's put his schooling on hold while he heals from the attack. He still has significant bruising and swelling a week later. And he's sure that was his last trolley trip.

"Never riding again, never ever," he said. "I am just going to suck it up and sit in traffic."

The San Diego Police Department is investigating the attack. Officers are still trying to locate the suspect.

Nelson identified the suspect as having a close-cropped haircut and three diamond-shaped tattoos under his eye and on his arms.