What you need to know this Tuesday evening, September 9, 2025.

Federal Prosecutors Seek Maximum Penalty in Charlotte Train Stabbing Case

The Justice Department charged Decarlos Brown Jr. on Tuesday with the fatal stabbing of 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on a Charlotte commuter train, a federal offense that carries the possibility of the death penalty.

Brown, who has 14 prior criminal cases and a schizophrenia diagnosis, was already facing a state murder charge. Footage shows him attacking Zarutska without provocation as passengers fled. Her killing has fueled debate over violent crime, mental illness, and transit safety in Charlotte.

Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina, announces federal charges against career criminal Decarlos Br

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