Butts County Sheriff Gary Long. FOX 5 Atlanta photo
BUTTS COUNTY, Ga. – The Butts County sheriff is urging residents to legally arm themselves following the fatal stabbing of a Ukrainian refugee on a Charlotte commuter train.
What we know:
Authorities said 23-year-old Iryna Zarutska was killed last month when 34-year-old Decarlos Brown stabbed her three times in the throat while she was riding the Blue Line CAT train on her way home from work at a local pizzeria. Investigators said the attack appeared random.
Iryna Zarutksa. Courtesy of GoFundMe
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Brown, who has a lengthy criminal history, now faces state murder charges and a federal charge of committing an act causing death on a mass transportation system, which could carry the death penalty.
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Outrage over killing in Charlotte, NC
Many people and politicians are outraged after a young woman who had fled to the U.S. for safety was randomly attacked and killed while taking a train home from her job in Charlotte, North Carolina. She was stabbed to death seemingly at random by a man behind her on the train.
What they’re saying:
Sheriff Gary Long responded Tuesday night on social media after video of the attack was released.
In his post, Long called the stabbing “a clear and undisputed reminder” that citizens who can legally own firearms should do so and be trained to use them. He urged residents to be ready to protect themselves and others.
“The horrific video of the attack is a clear and undisputed reminder why every citizen that can legally posses a firearm, SHOULD possess a firearm and they should be proficient with it. I’m completely baffled that not one person out of the many watching intervened, helped or tried to stop the heinous attack on this helpless woman,” Sheriff Long wrote.
“I am asking each and every citizen across Butts County, that is legally allowed to posses a firearm, to please exercise their 2nd Amendment right, be trained and proficient and stay ready to protect yourself and/or a helpless third party,” Sheriff Long continued.
Long also encouraged citizens to sign up for the sheriff’s office handgun safety and self-defense classes. His post included a photo of Zarutska and asked the community to keep her family in their prayers.
