AFTERMATH OF THE CHARLOTTE
STABBING BECOMES POLITICIZED
By Cash Michaels
Contributing writer
The coldblooded on-camera killing of a 23-year-old Ukrainian woman, allegedly by a black homeless man with a history of mental problems, has become hot political fodder for Republicans seeking to smear Democrats with the tragedy, ultimately using it to demand the re-institution of the death penalty in North Carolina.
But Democratic leaders are pushing back, saying that more criminal justice and mental health resources - resources that the Trump Administration has been cutting and NC Republican legislative leaders have not passed due to a stalemate in passing a budget - are sorely needed to prevent such tragedies in the future.
The August 22nd murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska, allegedly by 34-year-old Decarlos Brown, Jr. on the Charlotte light rail system, became a flashpoint for political controversy when censored surveillance video of the crime was released nationally, and President Donald Trump not only condemned the horrific act, but immediately blamed North Carolina Democratic leaders for it- including Democratic Charlotte Mayor Vy Lyles (who is running for re-election), and former Governor Roy Cooper, who is currently running for election to the U.S. Senate seat being vacated in 2026 by Republican Senator Thom Tillis.
“North Carolina, and every State, needs LAW AND ORDER, and only Republicans will deliver it!,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social social media platform after the video became public.“…[H]er blood is on the hands of Democrats who refuse to put bad people in jail, including Former Disgraced Governor and ‘Wannabe Senator’ Roy Cooper,”
The president, who has mounted an anti-crime campaign across the nation in recent months involving the National Guard and ICE agents patrolling Democratic-run cities, also called for the death penalty to be imposed in the case, saying, “…there can be no other option.”
NC Republican legislative leaders Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger and House Speaker Destin Hall, joined by GOP U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley, immediately held a press conference after Trump’s Democratic condemnation to criticize Charlotte’s Democratic leadership as being “soft on crime,” promising to take a closer look at Charlotte and Mecklenburg County’s budgets to see where tax dollars are being spent.
Then they went after former Gov. Cooper, charging that his 2020 appointed Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice was partly responsible for Iryna Zarutska’s slaying.
"DeCarlos Brown Jr., a dangerous career criminal, should have been behind bars years ago, but my opponent Roy Cooper's lenient 2020 executive order kept him on the streets, endangering communities. In June 2020, Cooper signed a soft-on-crime executive order, and just three months later, Brown was released from prison,” Whatley, former NC GOP and RNC co-chair, charged in a Sept. 6th post on X. “Cooper bears direct responsibility for this heinous act and must answer to the public about why he prioritizes criminals over public safety.”
The Cooper senate campaign pushed back, noting that the task force had no legislative powers, and only made recommendations to the governor and the legislature, none of which were ever made law.
The Cooper campaign also noted that he has never had anything to do with Decarlos Brown, Jr. as attorney general or governor.
“This was a heartbreaking, despicable act of evil and Iryna Zarutska’s family and loved ones are in our prayers,” The Cooper campaign said in a statement.“Roy Cooper knows North Carolinians need to be safe in their communities; he spent his career prosecuting violent criminals and drug dealers [as state attorney general], increasing the penalties for violence against law enforcement, and keeping thousands of criminals off the streets and behind bars.”
Democratic Mayor Lyles issued an open letter, saying the murder was a “tragic failure by the courts and magistrates,” adding, "Our police officers arrest people only to have them quickly released, which undermines our ability to protect our community and ensure safety.”
"Tragic incidents like these should force us to look at what we are doing across our community to address root causes,” Lyles continued. "We will never arrest our way out of issues such as homelessness and mental health.”
12th District Democratic Congresswoman Alma Adams told ABC News last week, “ I would just say that the city of Charlotte and the county of Mecklenburg, we’re working to make sure that people are safe. It’s a very disturbing video with a very stressful, disturbing situation, and it was egregious. People who commit crimes should be arrested and held accountable.”
Republican legislative leaders are also using the tragic case to promote a package of proposed tougher criminal justice measures for pretrial release, rollback criminal justice reform and to re-institute the death penalty, which has not been carried out since 2006 since a moratorium was court-imposed, though the death penalty is still legal in the state.
Berger and Hall said expect that anti-crime package to be introduced when the legislature returns from break on Sept. 22nd.
Any anti-crime package passed by the legislature must be signed by Gov. Josh Stein, who has criticized Republican legislative leaders for not taking up his own proposed package of anti-crime measures.
The case involving Decarlos Brown, Jr. became even more controversial when his long trouble-plagued criminal and mental health histories were revealed. Plus, his mother and sister spoke out, charging that both systems had failed to give him the help he needed when he was released from prison.
His family said he had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and suffered hallucinations and paranoia.
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FEDERAL APPEALS COURT
STRIKES DOWN NC LAW
PROHIBITING FELONS FROM
VOTING
By Cash Michaels
Contributing writer
The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week that a NC law that punished former convicted felons for voting, especially if they mistakenly thought that their right to vote had been restored, was unconstitutional because the law’s 19th century racist roots “have not been cleansed.”
The ruling does not change the reality that North Carolina felons currently serving active prison sentences are ineligible to vote. But once they leave prison, and may mistakenly cast a ballot on the belief that they are free to do so, they now cannot be prosecuted for it.
The three federal appellate court judges who ruled in the case were all appointed by Democratic presidents - Judges James Wynn and Pamela Harris, appointed by Pres. Barack Obama, and Judge DeAndrea Salvador appointed by Pres. Joe Biden.
The State Board of Elections, the defendant in the case, argued that even though the state law banning voting by convicted felons had been amended by the legislature in 2023, it only applied to future former felons once they’ve left prison and completed their sentence obligations.
Advocates for current former felons argued that not only was that confusing, but unfair, and filed suit. They argued that prosecutors could go after current former felons who vote if they mistakenly participated in an election.
A black federal judge, Loretta Biggs, agreed, citing the racist history of the ban on former felons voting, but that didn’t stop the state elections board from appealing to the US Fourth Circuit.
The appellate panel agreed with Judge Biggs, saying, “When presented with stories of continuing criminal charges for mistakenly voting, it is not a stretch to imagine that eligible community members ... might not understand that they as new registrants could not be prosecuted for the same.”
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