Charlotte Murder Highlights Danger of NC Democrats’ Soft-On-Crime Agenda
On August 22, the City of Charlotte was rocked by the violent murder of 23-year-old Iryan Zarutska, who fled war-torn Ukraine and was commuting home on Charlotte’s Blue Line. The recent release of the video spurred national interest in the story, because what’s apparent is that Zarutska could have been any one of us.
This story provides a clear example of the danger that all Americans face as a result of Democrats' soft-on-crime policies. Here is what is currently known about the suspect, Decarlos Brown Jr.
Police confirmed that Brown did not know his attacker.
Brown has a long criminal record dating back to 2011. Brown faced charges including robbery with a dangerous weapon and communicating threats. He served five years in prison for armed robbery, only to be arrested again for assaulting his sister months after being released from jail.
In fact, Brown was facing criminal charges for misusing the 911 system and his public defender questioned his mental capacity. Even with his criminal history filled with violent incidents, the magistrate released Brown back onto the streets with a “written promise to appear.”
Brown needed to be held accountable for his actions, but instead, liberal crime policies allowed him to roam the streets. The sensible response from public officials to this tragedy is to console the families and commit to holding the perpetrator accountable to the fullest extent of the law. Instead, Charlotte officials tried to airbrush this act of evil by labeling it as a mental health problem.
In her first public statement responding to the murder, Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles said, “This tragic situation sheds light on the problems with social safety nets related to mental healthcare and systems that should be in place… I want to be clear that I am not villainizing those who struggle with mental health or those who are unhoused.” In her statement, Lyles spent more time apologizing for the perpetrator rather than committing to making sure he faced justice.
The Charlotte District Attorney told Charlotte Axios that his office struggled to hold people accountable with “mental health issues.”
In Charlotte Optimist, Mecklenburg County Sheriff McFadden ducked any responsibility saying, “The majority of his time is spent in his community. … So we take that, the time that [Brown] spent with us, versus the time that he is with the community: Who failed him? I didn’t fail him. The community failed him.”
The response begs the question: Why are the three leaders charged with protecting Charlotte so quick to avoid responsibility for failing to hold people accountable?
One clear reason is that, as Governor Roy Cooper pushed policies to avoid holding people accountable for breaking the law, to focused on addressing mental health concerns. Nearly everyone deals with mental health issues at some point, but they don’t break the law. Nor does a mental health issue annul someone’s responsibility to follow the law.
This morning, Chairman Michael Whatley’s campaign released an example of how policy changes championed by Cooper led to a more dangerous North Carolina. In 2020, Cooper launched the North Carolina Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice, led by then Attorney General Josh Stein and Associate Justice Anita Earls (who is up for reelection in 2026). In the video, Cooper can be seen advocating for changes to pre-trial release policies, often referred to misleadingly as bail reform. This type of policy is exactly why, despite his violent criminal history and credible questions about his mental status, Brown was released on a “promise to appear.”
The problems caused by Cooper go beyond a single policy, but rather his whole philosophy and approach toward violent crime. Here are some of the most eye-catching policies he enacted that set the tone for criminal justice under his watch.
Cooper gladly accepted the endorsement of defund the police groups.
In the waning days of his term, he commuted the sentences of 15 convicted criminals on death row, including murderers and a rapist.
Under Cooper’s watch, nearly 500 illegal immigrants were freed from jails across North Carolina, including individuals facing sex offenses such as kidnapping, arson, and homicide charges.
Near the end of the pandemic, Cooper colluded with far-left groups in a settlement to release over 3,500 prisoners early, including those convicted of violent offenses.
During the George Floyd riots, Cooper broke his own Executive Order to march with the rioters, who were burning cities across North Carolina, including Raleigh, Charlotte, Wilmington, and Asheville.
Since Cooper took office at the start of 2017, Charlotte has seen a consistent increase in murders. The chart from Queen City News shows that while Cooper was governor, and Lyles served as mayor, the numbers of murders increased from about 50-60 a year, to over 100.
Now that he’s running for Senate, Cooper is trying to distance himself from his long record of soft-on-crime policies. But the facts on the ground remain the same, North Carolina is more dangerous today because of Cooper’s agenda.
