Political pressure mounts on Charlotte, Mayor Vi Lyles in light rail case

Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles issued a new statement Monday on the fatal stabbing of Iryna Zarutska on the Lynx Blue Line, placing the blame for the killing on the court system and magistrates — as President Trump and the nation's top transportation official condemned Charlotte. Her latest statement on the killing was a sharp departure from her previous written statements, which were widely condemned as being out-of-touch.

Zarutska’s death on the light rail on Aug. 23 has become an international story after a gruesome surveillance video of the killing was released over the weekend. The story dominated national cable news, running throughout the day on CNN, Fox and other networks. Trump mentioned the killing during his speech at the Museum of the Bible on Monday. And later Monday, he posted about it on Truth Social, urging people to vote against Democrat Roy Cooper and for Republican Michael Whatley in next year's U.S. Senate race.

"I have seen the horrific video of a beautiful, young Ukrainian refugee, who came to America to escape the vicious War in Ukraine, and was innocently riding the Metro in Charlotte, North Carolina, where she was brutally ambushed by a mentally deranged lunatic," Trump wrote. "The blood of this innocent woman can literally be seen dripping from the killer’s knife, and now her blood is on the hands of the Democrats who refuse to put bad people in jail."

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, meanwhile, said his department would launch an investigation of Charlotte transit, and that, "If mayors can’t keep their trains and buses safe, they don’t deserve the taxpayers’ money."

The firestorm of criticism comes as Charlotte is two months away from a referendum on November’s ballot that will ask voters to approve a sales tax hike to pay for billions of dollars of new trains, buses and roads.

Lyles’ original statement several days after the death has been sharply criticized by the media and politicians. They have mocked the mayor for not mentioning the victim by name, as well as her plea that people with mental illness and who are homeless not be painted with a broad brush.

Charlotte Area Transit System video

The National Review wrote a story about the mayor’s comments with a headline: “What the Hell is Charlotte’s Mayor, Vi Lyles, Talking About?” Duffy criticized Lyles for “downplaying murders like this by saying we can’t demonize the homeless or the mentally ill.”

Facing mounting pressure, Lyles said in a written statement Monday that her heart goes out to her community as we try to make sense of his horrific and senseless loss.

She also said, “This was a tragic failure by the courts and magistrates. Our police officers arrest people only to have them quickly released, which undermines our ability to protect our community and ensure safety.”

The suspect in the case, DeCarlos Brown, had been arrested more than a dozen times before.

In response, the Fraternal Order of Police in Charlotte blasted the mayor on social media, saying it has been complaining about criminals being caught and then released for years. It said Lyles never reached out to hear their concerns. Lyles' office said Monday that she will not give interviews.

In her letter, Lyles also said that “effective immediately, CATS security personnel will be re-deployed for a stronger presence on Blue Line platforms and to increase fare enforcement. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department will also be increasing patrols at key areas across the transit system. These changes will allow CATS to fully execute the transit system policing plan, including the Blue Line.”