How can you say that these people deserve to be punished for not risking their lives? If they had intervened, who is to say the attacker wouldn't have killed both of them? They almost certainly would have lost their jobs due to liability issues.

I mean, I hope that they are decent enough people that they will have to live with guilt for not having done more, but truth be told, they didn't do anything wrong. Would you risk your life to save someone if you had kids at home, or a family to feed?

They are subway employees. They are not cops, or firefighters, or trained assassins or karate masters. They called who they had to call, and if the police had arrived sooner, they probably would be heroes.