A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
Passengers on Charlotte's light rail are seeing more police after a Ukrainian refugee was stabbed to death on a train last month. Widely shared video shows the attacker stabbing the woman from behind. President Trump has called for the death penalty. Nick de la Canal from member station WFAE spoke with riders about their concerns.
AUTOMATED VOICE: Please stand clear. Doors are closing.
NICK DE LA CANAL, BYLINE: It's late morning on the Charlotte Blue Line. A young woman, Eli Sanchez (ph), sits by window, backpack at her side. Like many others, she watched the video of 23-year-old Iryna Zarutska being stabbed to death on a train by a man seated behind her.
ELI SANCHEZ: Yeah, I was kind of just angry at the fact that no one really helped her.
DE LA CANAL: She rides the train almost daily to school and uptown to skate and says riding at night can feel different.
SANCHEZ: Honestly, yeah, sometimes it's just people are sketchy, really sketchy.
DE LA CANAL: It's the first killing on Charlotte's light rail since it opened in 2007. Police say violent crime in the city is down 25% this year, and homicides are down 29%. But after the footage was released, the White House quickly blamed Democrats and city leaders as soft on crime. In a statement, Mayor Vi Lyles pushed back, calling the tragedy a failure of the courts.
AUTOMATED VOICE: This stop is Charlotte Transportation Center and Arena Station.
DE LA CANAL: The suspect, 34-year-old Decarlos Brown Jr., had 14 prior arrests and served five years for armed robbery. In another car, rider Lonnie Gasque (ph) says the court system deserves scrutiny.
LONNIE GASQUE: If they are causing that much violence, like, if it's actually, like, physical violence and hurting people, then I think they - the courts really need to take into account whether they should be in the public.
DE LA CANAL: In January, after a misdemeanor arrest for misusing 911, a judge released Brown on a written promise to appear in court and ordered a mental health evaluation. His family said he was schizophrenic. Some riders, like Dayo Fagbola (ph), say they're more alert.
DAYO FAGBOLA: I'd rather sit with my back against the wall - nobody behind me. Yeah, that's why I'm sitting here.
DE LA CANAL: He wants leaders to stop pointing fingers and work together.
FAGBOLA: I don't think we can pick and choose who's responsible. It's everybody's responsibility.
DE LA CANAL: According to his lawyer, Brown is undergoing a psychological evaluation. Meanwhile, federal agencies are involved in the investigation. Zarutska's family has asked the media not to show video of her killing.
For NPR News, I'm Nick de la Canal in Charlotte.
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