Erie teen girl accused of stabbing fellow 15-year-old on EMTA bus waives assault charge

A 15-year-old girl accused of stabbing another girl on an Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority bus as it was leaving Erie High School in early January has waived a felony charge in the Erie police case to court.

Anaya R. Graves, 15, waived over a second-degree felony count of aggravated assault as she appeared before Erie 6th Ward District Judge Timothy Beveridge for her preliminary hearing on Thursday morning. Prosecutors dropped five other charges Graves was facing in the case, including a first-degree felony count of aggravated assault.

Graves, who was charged by police as an adult in the stabbing, remains in the Edmund L. Thomas Adolescent Center, with her bond set at $25,000.

Erie police accuse Graves of stabbing another 15-year-old girl during a confrontation on the EMTA bus. The other girl was stabbed twice in the torso, according to investigators.

Police said the stabbing happened on Jan. 3, a day after classes in the Erie School District resumed following a holiday break that began Dec. 22, according to the district's calendar. Police took Graves into custody the day after the incident.

Police wrote in the criminal complaint against Graves that the EMTA bus had picked up students at Erie High, 3325 Cherry St., and was traveling south on Cherry Street when Graves got into a physical altercation with the other girl. Police allege Graves produced a knife and began swinging it in the direction of the other girl.

Information from witnesses and surveillance video from the bus led police to charge Graves in the case, according to investigators.

In response to the stabbing, Erie School District officials acted in February on creating a program to place monitors on EMTA buses that transport high school students before and after school. Officials said they are still trying to fill monitor positions for the program.

Staff writer Ed Palattella contributed to this story.

Contact Tim Hahn at thahn@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNhahn

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Girl, 15, waives adult assault charge in stabbing of teen on Erie bus