‘I try not to get emotional but it’s hard’: Family of man shot at bus stop speaks out

SEATTLE – Five people were shot at a downtown Seattle bus stop Wednesday night; four of them were still at Harborview Medical Center recovering from their injuries on Thursday evening.

One of the victims is 26-year-old Jesse Baker; police said he was shot in his back. Jesse’s family were blessed to learn he will likely survive his injuries.

“Me and my brother are really close,” said Jesse’s sister, Rayya. “I try not to get emotional but it’s hard.”



Rayya said she didn’t find out what happened until she turned on the news. She said her mother told her that Jesse had been shot in his back while waiting at a bus stop in downtown Seattle.

“Downtown has been a really bad area for a long time,” she said. “I didn’t know honestly if it was some kind of gang retaliation towards anybody or anything, but I just knew my brother was down there and he was fighting for his life.”

The five people shot were all caught in the gunman’s cross-hairs. Medics rushed the victims to Harborview.

Rayya said recent tests showed the bullet in her brother’s back narrowly missed his spinal column.

Jesse’s father told Q13 News Thursday night that learning his son was shot was one of his worst nightmares come true.

“Any parent hears something like that, the first thing that runs through your mind is to get up here and hope and pray that he’s all right,” he said.

Hospital officials said one man has already been discharged, but three men and one woman are still hospitalized in either serious or satisfactory condition.

Police said the suspect got into an argument with others, turned to walk away and then spun back around and opened fire before fleeing on foot. The suspect was still at large Thursday night.