Increased police presence, ticketing enforcement addressed after fatal stabbing on Charlotte light rail

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Nearly two weeks after a deadly stabbing on Charlotte’s Blue Line light rail, leaders from across the Charlotte metro met to review and discuss safety and security on public transit.

23-year-old Iryna Zarutska was fatally stabbed on the light rail in South End the night of August 22. The violent attack is what spurred Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles to call a special meeting of the Metro Transit Commission on Wednesday morning.

“This is time for us to really take a moment and say what are the things we can do immediately and what are the things we have to do incrementally,” said Lyles.

CATS officials told the commission that since December, they have implemented a transit policing model with 186 armed and unarmed security officers on staff.

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Interim CEO Brent Cagle was also asked about additional security screening being done at stations, like what is seen at an airport. He said no system in the country uses screening, nor is it compatible with mass transit.

“It would be impossible to do that, to deploy that throughout the system,” he told the commission.

Much of the meeting focused on fare enforcement as CATS believes the suspect in the fatal stabbing, Decarlos Brown, did not pay before boarding the light rail the night of the murder. Cagle said one option to deter bad actors is tracking who isn’t paying and following rider rules and then banning repeat offenders.

Wednesday’s meeting was solely informational, so no recommendations were made, but frequent light rail rider Diana Giles Gentry told Queen City News she has a few suggestions in mind.

“We need more of the presence of police, and that’s just my take on it, personally, because I know it’s a deterrent,” said Giles Gentry.

The commission will meet again on September 17 and will make time for public comment.