Repeat offender stabs woman at NJ airport, woman blames judicial system for attack: "They have failed me"

Over the weekend, a North Carolina woman who was stabbed by a homeless repeat offender at a New Jersey airport spoke out about the attack, describing the moments leading up to and following the assault.

"Melissa Mauldin, who was waiting for her friend in a restroom at the airport, was suddenly attacked by a man who came from behind and stabbed her in the face with a knife. She didn't hear him coming because of the noise in the airport, but felt the pressure and turned around to see what was happening."

She continued, "I immediately took off running through the airport, screaming for help."

Jin Xiong, a 54-year-old man, was arrested at Newark Liberty International Airport and charged with aggravated assault and unlawful possession of a weapon. The Union County Prosecutor's Office stated that he could also face an attempted murder charge.

At the time of the incident, Mauldin was on his way back home from a friend's wedding in New Jersey.

The suspect was released from jail for aggravated assault and allegedly attacked her shortly thereafter.

Mauldin argues that the judicial system has "failed" her and the community by compromising public safety, as the judges involved in her multiple criminal cases have been responsible for the attack.

""They have failed me and others by consistently charging this man with simple assault, imprisoning him briefly, and releasing him, despite his history of stabbing multiple people. In my opinion, he should be charged with attempted murder and kept off the streets to prevent further harm to others," Mauldin stated."

"My main goal is to publish this story, so that he doesn't have the opportunity to harm anyone else like he has harmed me," she stated.

Since 2009, Xiong has been in and out of jail due to his history of violent behavior. In 2007, he reportedly stabbed two people, and in 2009, he attacked a New Jersey corrections officer by stabbing him in the neck with a sharpened pencil.

"She couldn't grasp it yet," she stated.