Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy reaffirmed the Trump administration's commitment to holding Atlanta's Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) "accountable" following the horrific stabbing death of a great-grandmother, announcing Friday that the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is actively scrutinizing the transit system's safety and security plans.In an X post Friday, Duffy said the FTA has launched a comprehensive review of MARTA's security spending and safety protocols, along with risks to riders and workers.He noted that while MARTA met the government's initial deadline for a response and assured the administration they are taking action, the FTA "won't stop there."John Elijah Matthews faces a federal charge of committing an act of violence causing death on a mass transportation system, after he allegedly stabbed 66-year-old Margaret Swan aboard a Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) train.(@SecDuffy/X)ATLANTA TRAIN STABBING SUSPECT FACES NEW CHARGE AS FEDS WEIGH DEATH PENALTY IN GREAT-GRANDMOTHER’S KILLING"We are examining every aspect of their plan to verify if substantive improvements are being made," Duffy wrote in the post.
"This includes pouring over hundreds of pages of documents and conducting on-site visits to see the situation on the ground.We will continue to work to secure Atlanta's system for passengers and transit workers alike."The intense federal review into MARTA was launched after the unprovoked killing of 66-year-old Margaret Swan. Swan was riding a northbound MARTA train near the Oakland City Station on May 30 when John Elijah Matthews, 25, allegedly approached her, reached into his pocket and opened a folding knife.John Elijah Matthews allegedly began the attack by cutting the throat of the victim, identified as Margaret Swan, just seconds after he walked up next to where she was sitting on a train approaching the Oakland City MARTA station.
(MARTA | Fulton County Sheriff's Office)DISTURBING CONTENT W...