On The Anniversary Of The Murder Of Iryna Zarutska, Michael Whatley And Other Republicans Call For Stronger Public Safety Policies, and Former Gov. Roy Cooper Refuses To Apologize

Over the weekend, Republicans across North Carolina including the Republican nominee for the United States Senate, Michael Whatley, remembered the violent murder of Iryna Zarutska.  

In Charlotte, Whaltey held an event to remember the horrific tragedy of Iryna Zarutska’s murder and highlight former Governor Cooper’s long record of implementing soft-on-crime policies.  

“Iryna Zarutska’s blood is on Roy Cooper’s hands. When Roy Cooper chose to allow her killer, Decarlos Brown Jr, to roam the streets, he put the entire city of Charlotte at risk. Unfortunately, today marks one year since Iryna was taken from her family because Cooper chose to place criminals over North Carolinians. As your next Senator, I will work tirelessly to ensure that tragedies like Iryna’s senseless murder never occur again,” said Michael Whatley. 

Examples of Cooper’s soft-on-crime policies that endangered North Carolinians: 

• Agreed to release thousands of criminals into North Carolina, including drug dealers, rapists, murderers, and child predators.  

• Wants to implement the soft-on-crime policies his "Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice" championed like eliminating cash bail, a policy that helped secure the release of DeCarlos Brown, and wants to "reimagine public safety" (defund the police).   

• Commuted the sentences of 15 convicted killers. 

• Appointed soft-on-crime judges that let violent criminals roam free.  

• Marched with defund the police radicals. 

Cooper issued a bland statement acknowledging the tragedy, but noticeably he did not apologize or accept any responsibility for his agenda.  

North Carolina Speaker of the House Destin Hall said, “One year ago today, Iryna Zarutska was brutally murdered by a violent felon who had been arrested 14 times. Democrats’ soft-on-crime policies have deadly consequences, and Iryna paid the ultimate price.  We must fight to ensure this never happens again.”