Zarutska Family Sues Charlotte, Security Firm 1 Year After Fatal Light Rail Stabbing
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 23
Zarutska Family Sues Charlotte, Security Firm 1 Year After Fatal Light Rail Stabbing
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 23
Summary
A wrongful-death lawsuit filed Friday in Mecklenburg County says Iryna Zarutska’s killing on a Charlotte light rail train was preventable and seeks monetary damages from the city and Professional Security Services.
The complaint alleges Charlotte and its transit security contractor knew about violent crime on and around the rail line but failed to provide adequate fare enforcement, turnstiles and staffing despite having the resources.
Frank Scott Haskell, Zarutska’s uncle, filed the case a year after the Ukrainian refugee was stabbed while riding home from work; Decarlos Brown Jr. was charged, but a judge ruled him incompetent to stand trial in June.
Zarutska’s death became a wider flashpoint over transit safety, violent crime and mental illness in Charlotte, and North Carolina later passed Iryna’s Law tightening bail and bond rules for some violent offenses.