Malachi Houston, a 27-year-old from Bedford-Stuyvesant, is seeking $30 million in damages after an altercation with a bus driver led to his wrongful arrest and loss of employment. The incident occurred on June 8, 2024, when Houston and other passengers on the B99 bus in Brooklyn became frustrated after the driver, Isaac Egharevba, took an unannounced detour. A confrontation ensued, during which Houston claims the driver attacked him, leading to a physical struggle that ended with the driver suffering a facial injury.

Despite video footage showing Houston being grabbed and choked by the driver, he was charged with second-degree attempted murder and spent five days in Rikers Island before a grand jury declined to indict him. Houston, who lost his job as a delivery driver following the incident, maintains that he was defending himself and that the media misrepresented the situation, leading to his wrongful arrest and public vilification.

Houston’s lawyer, Mark Shirian, argues that the video evidence clears his client of any wrongdoing, emphasizing that Houston was reacting to an unprovoked attack. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which employs Egharevba, is reviewing the incident, but the driver remains on the job. As Houston awaits a final decision from the grand jury in October, he has avoided public transit out of fear, relying instead on cabs and rideshare services.