New York will take the extraordinary step of deploying National Guard troops to patrol its subway system, following a spate of violent attacks that have unnerved riders and sparked fresh claims from Republicans of lawlessness in America’s biggest cities.
The plan was announced on Wednesday morning by Kathy Hochul, the state’s Democratic governor. Among the recent incidents that prompted the move was the slashing in the neck of a train conductor and an assault on a cellist performing in a subway station as part of a musical charity.
“These brazen, heinous attacks on our subway system will not be tolerated,” Hochul said as she unveiled the five-point plan.