The 51-year-old man who is accused of shooting and killing a Metro bus passenger after hijacking the bus and leading police on a slow-speed pursuit through South Los Angeles pleaded not guilty in court on Thursday.

Lamont Campbell faces counts of murder, carjacking, and kidnapping as part of a dozen felony charges filed against him in connection with the Sept. 25, 2024 incident. 

At an evidentiary hearing earlier this month, the driver of the bus testified that he "said goodbye to my family" as the bus came to a stop after the police pursuit, saying that he was worried about a possible standoff and shooting after a nearly hourlong ordeal with the gunman.

Campbell boarded the Metro bus around 12:45 a.m. at the corner of Figueroa Street and Vernon Avenue in South LA before pulling out a gun and allegedly shooting passenger Anthony Rivera. The 48-year-old Los Angeles resident was riding the bus to get home from work. Family members said he had just finished a shift at Dodger Stadium that night. 

Campbell allegedly shot Rivera multiple times before threatening the driver. Rivera died later at a hospital from his wounds. LA Metro said earlier that another passenger was injured while trying to flee. The LA Metro driver was allegedly held at gunpoint for over an hour with "Emergency" and "911 Call Police" flashing on the bus's front light display as the suspect ordered him to drive, triggering a slow police pursuit. The driver managed to reach police by pressing a 911 emergency button on the bus.  

He said he bypassed bus stops with passengers who had been waiting to board and honked to alert oncoming vehicles about the bus. He testified he stopped at the final stop on the route, opened the doors for passengers to exit, but he said no one moved because they were in shock. He said the gunman told him to close the doors and to keep rolling. 

At one point, the gunman allowed one passenger to leave the bus but ordered another to remain aboard, and at another point, he was eating and playing music on his cell phone, the bus driver said.

Police laid down two spike strips, and the bus was disabled and came to a stop after a 45-minute pursuit. Campbell allegedly barricaded himself in the bus, leading SWAT officers to shoot bean bags and stun grenades, ultimately taking him into custody.

Campbell, who allegedly has a string of drug-related convictions dating back as far as 1993, has remained behind bars since his arrest. He is due back in court for a pretrial hearing on Aug. 26.