UNITED STATES - Recent incidents in Charlotte, Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, and New York highlight safety concerns for commuters in these large cities.
The killing of a commuter aboard a North Carolina train is the latest act of violence affecting the United States' public transit systems, and according to Fox News, reports of other attacks continue to alarm riders.
On August 22, Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee, finished a night of work at Zepeddie's Pizzeria when she boarded a train in Charlotte to make her way home.
Released surveillance video shows the girl, still in her work uniform, taking a seat in front of a man wearing a red hoodie.
Moments later, the man can be seen pulling out a knife and stabbing Zarutska to death.
The alleged suspect in that incident has been identified by police as Decarlos Brown. He has since been arrested on a murder charge.
The attack sparked concern around the country, with the possibility of violence impacting those who rely on public transit.
"Transit violence disproportionately impacts low-income and middle-class Americans because they are the primary users," Lance LoRusso, founder of the Blue Line Lawyer Institute, told Fox News Digital.
"Riders do not choose their fellow passengers and have no choice but to accept a seat next to someone who may cause them concern. The open access and utility of a mass transit system requires that anyone can ride."
"Therefore, all travelers are limited in their self-defense and protection strategies. For example, a person can choose not to share a city cab with another passenger, but has no such option on a city bus or train, and may have limited options should they become involved in a potentially dangerous scenario."
In recent years, several high-profile attacks have made national headlines, forcing Americans to question if their daily commute could mean risking their lives.
In August, Chicago police announced they were searching for five suspects wanted for their alleged involvement in an attack that left one person injured on the city's Red Line train.
The group allegedly beat the victim before taking his property.
That incident came just a few months after four people allegedly approached an elderly man on the CTA Red Line train before taking his belongings and beating him.
The four suspects, two men and two women, are accused of stealing the senior citizen's cellphone while he was riding the train.
When the victim attempted to retrieve his belongings, the group allegedly battered the man before running off.
Last year, Daniel Penny, 26, was acquitted by a New York City jury after facing charges of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in the 2023 subway death of Jordan Neely.
The incident made national headlines.
Neely, a 30-year-old homeless man who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, barged onto an uptown F train and began threatening passengers.
Penny, an architecture student and Marine veteran, intervened in an attempt to protect the riders, with bystander video showing Penny holding Neely in a chokehold on the floor of the train.
In Los Angeles, a man was hospitalized in grave condition after being stabbed multiple times in the neck while riding the bus in North Hollywood.
The incident happened on September 3, when two young men riding the city's Metro G Line bus became involved in a verbal argument.
According to witnesses, the altercation reportedly became physical when the alleged attacker pulled out a four-inch pocket knife and stabbed the victim three times in the neck.
The suspect, identified as 33-year-old Logan Dunn, was taken into custody immediately after the attack.
A 74-year-old Boston man was stabbed in the neck while riding an MBTA bus in September 2024.
At the time of the attack, the alleged suspect, Abdur-Rasheed was facing a pending case in Roxbury for allegedly stabbing a stranger in 2023.
A New York City subway rider was killed after being set on fire while sleeping on a train in Brooklyn last year.
The alleged suspect, 33-year-old Sebastian Zapeta, approached the woman before pulling out a lighter and setting her clothes on fire.
Surveillance of the attack shows the woman standing up while engulfed in flames.
"This was malicious. A sleeping, vulnerable woman on our subway system," Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said at the time of the attack.
"This act surprised many New Yorkers as they were getting ready to celebrate the holidays, but now New Yorkers are waking up and understanding that on the 22nd of this year, this happened. This was intentional and we hope to prove this."
The killing of a commuter aboard a North Carolina train is the latest act of violence affecting the United States' public transit systems, and according to Fox News, reports of other attacks continue to alarm riders.
On August 22, Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee, finished a night of work at Zepeddie's Pizzeria when she boarded a train in Charlotte to make her way home.
Released surveillance video shows the girl, still in her work uniform, taking a seat in front of a man wearing a red hoodie.
Moments later, the man can be seen pulling out a knife and stabbing Zarutska to death.
The alleged suspect in that incident has been identified by police as Decarlos Brown. He has since been arrested on a murder charge.
The attack sparked concern around the country, with the possibility of violence impacting those who rely on public transit.
"Transit violence disproportionately impacts low-income and middle-class Americans because they are the primary users," Lance LoRusso, founder of the Blue Line Lawyer Institute, told Fox News Digital.
"Riders do not choose their fellow passengers and have no choice but to accept a seat next to someone who may cause them concern. The open access and utility of a mass transit system requires that anyone can ride."
"Therefore, all travelers are limited in their self-defense and protection strategies. For example, a person can choose not to share a city cab with another passenger, but has no such option on a city bus or train, and may have limited options should they become involved in a potentially dangerous scenario."
In recent years, several high-profile attacks have made national headlines, forcing Americans to question if their daily commute could mean risking their lives.
In August, Chicago police announced they were searching for five suspects wanted for their alleged involvement in an attack that left one person injured on the city's Red Line train.
The group allegedly beat the victim before taking his property.
That incident came just a few months after four people allegedly approached an elderly man on the CTA Red Line train before taking his belongings and beating him.
The four suspects, two men and two women, are accused of stealing the senior citizen's cellphone while he was riding the train.
When the victim attempted to retrieve his belongings, the group allegedly battered the man before running off.
Last year, Daniel Penny, 26, was acquitted by a New York City jury after facing charges of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in the 2023 subway death of Jordan Neely.
The incident made national headlines.
Neely, a 30-year-old homeless man who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, barged onto an uptown F train and began threatening passengers.
Penny, an architecture student and Marine veteran, intervened in an attempt to protect the riders, with bystander video showing Penny holding Neely in a chokehold on the floor of the train.
In Los Angeles, a man was hospitalized in grave condition after being stabbed multiple times in the neck while riding the bus in North Hollywood.
The incident happened on September 3, when two young men riding the city's Metro G Line bus became involved in a verbal argument.
According to witnesses, the altercation reportedly became physical when the alleged attacker pulled out a four-inch pocket knife and stabbed the victim three times in the neck.
The suspect, identified as 33-year-old Logan Dunn, was taken into custody immediately after the attack.
A 74-year-old Boston man was stabbed in the neck while riding an MBTA bus in September 2024.
At the time of the attack, the alleged suspect, Abdur-Rasheed was facing a pending case in Roxbury for allegedly stabbing a stranger in 2023.
A New York City subway rider was killed after being set on fire while sleeping on a train in Brooklyn last year.
The alleged suspect, 33-year-old Sebastian Zapeta, approached the woman before pulling out a lighter and setting her clothes on fire.
Surveillance of the attack shows the woman standing up while engulfed in flames.
"This was malicious. A sleeping, vulnerable woman on our subway system," Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said at the time of the attack.
"This act surprised many New Yorkers as they were getting ready to celebrate the holidays, but now New Yorkers are waking up and understanding that on the 22nd of this year, this happened. This was intentional and we hope to prove this."
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Comments
2025-09-24T21:33-0400 | Comment by: James
Black racism is alive and well in America now thanks to Ofingbama! Everyone should be carrying a weapon now!