As a North Carolina native, I’ve always considered my hometown to be quite safe. So when I heard the news of the fatal stabbing of Iryna Zarutska on the Charlotte light rail on Aug. 22, 2025, I was at a complete loss for words. Millions of people in our NC State community use local public transportation reminiscent of Charlotte’s light rail. I never thought something like this could happen in North Carolina, in my own backyard. While this brutal act of violence on the light rail feels unprecedented, it is the consequence of pre-existing judicial and societal failures.