The family of Iryna Zarutska, the Ukrainian refugee murdered on a train, have launched a wrongful death lawsuit against the city where she died and a private security firm over her “preventable” killing.Ms Zarutska, just 23, fled Ukraine following Vladimir Putin’s invasion invasion in 2022 – and had been living as a refugee in the US since.Though she fled war for safety in America, she was stabbed to death one year ago today in an unprovoked attack on a light railway in Charlotte, North Carolina.Her killer, Decarlos Brown Jr, 34, was captured on the public transport system’s CCTV in footage which shocked the world – and could face the death penalty if found guilty of her murder.Her family’s lawsuit now claims “systemic failures” left the transit system dangerously exposed.”This case arises from the preventable death of Iryna Zarutska,” the complaint against the City of Charlotte and Professional Police Services Inc, which operates as Professional Security Services (PSS), says.According to the lawsuit, no security guards were present on the train when Ms Zarutska was stabbed.PSS is accused of failing to properly staff the trains and deploy any armed and unarmed officers to guard them.Iryna Zarutska was stabbed to death one year ago today in an unprovoked attack on a light railway | CHARLOTTE AREA TRANSIT SYSTEM/WBTV NEWSCharlotte’s contract with PSS funded 219 security personnel across 2025 and 2026, but the complaint says just 183 had been hired at the time of the killing.Of the 39 armed guard positions provided for under the contract, just 11 are thought to have been filled.”They weren’t fully staffed,” family attorney Lauren Newton told WBTV. “If there had been a security guard on that train, Iryna Zarutska would be here.”The complaint also warns that rail fares were not being enforced on the transit system.
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Images of Ms Zarutska’s killing shocked the world as they circulated online | CHARLOTTE AREA TRANSIT SYSTEMIt claims alleged murderer Brown Jr boarded without paying before his attack.No physical barriers were in place to stop ticketless passengers from accessing the light rail, the suit claims.”There’s been literally no fare enforcement and those things, at a basic level, are what’s necessary for safety. And there’s been none of that,” Ms Newton said.The lawsuit further alleges that Charlotte and PSS were aware, or should have been, that the light railway line and its stops had been repeated sites of criminal activity.The lawsuit claims Decarlos Brown Jr boarded without paying before his attack on Ms Zarutska | MECKLENBURG COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE/JAMES FUNERAL HOME”Violent crime was absolutely foreseeable,” Ms Newton added.The estate is pursuing claims including wrongful death on the grounds of allegedly negligent security provision and gross negligence.Damages in excess of $25,000 are being sought, along with punitive damages against PSS specifically – though not against the City of Charlotte.”The family doesn’t want this to happen to anyone else’s loved one,” Ms Newton said.