In a Sept. 11 press conference, NC Speaker of the House Destin Hall, R-Caldwell; and Senate Leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, announced plans to introduce legislation later this month targeting crime in North Carolina in light of the recent murder of Iryna Zaruska, a Ukrainian immigrant, in Charlotte.
“We have been speaking about what we can do to prevent the tragedy that happened in Charlotte from ever happening again in this state,” said Hall. “So we’re still in the homework stage, finding out how this specific case happened. But from what we can tell so far, this was largely as a result of somebody being released from jail who should not have been released from jail. An individual who had a violent history, a convicted felon, had multiple charges, clearly had mental health issues, had multiple interactions with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, and somehow was allowed to walk out of the jail by a magistrate, by simply signing a written promise to appear again… We’re looking at several possible legislative actions to reform various issues with our magistrates with pretrial conditions of release.”
Berger and Hall also invited Michael Whatley, former chairman of the Republican National Convention (RNC) and the NCGOP. Whatley recently declared his candidacy for the US Senate, following incumbent Sen. Thom Tillis’ announcement that he would not seek re-election. Whatley has been endorsed by President Donald Trump and is running against former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.
The Republican leaders also mentioned the murder of conservative activist and co-founder of Turning Point USA Charlie Kirk, 31, which occurred less than 24 hours earlier at an event at Utah Valley University. The suspect who shot Kirk in the neck remains at large.
“It’s a solemn day, for many of the folks who work in this building actually knew Charlie Kirk,” said Hall.
Hall said many NCGA staff members have previously worked for Kirk and knew him personally and that “He was an incredible advocate for the conservative cause.” He also drew a parallel between Kirk’s death and the murder of Zaruska, saying that both were incidents that never should have happened and that the General Assembly plans to take every action necessary to prevent such crimes in the future.
“This is a tough day because of what happened years ago [Sept. 11, 2001], what happened in North Carolina in the last several weeks, and what happened 24 hours ago in Utah,” said Whatley. “This is the kind of conversation that we should not have to have in this country or here in North Carolina, but having this tough conversation and speaking these hard truths is the perfect way to honor the legacy of someone like Charlie. So we will.”
Berger announced that the General Assembly is working on a legislative package to tackle crime in North Carolina, which will be introduced on Sept. 22.
According to Berger, a good starting point is to prevent Gov. Josh Stein and other executive branch officials from creating future task forces like the one established by Roy Cooper. Berger said this task force advanced soft-on-crime policies and allowed Zaruska’s suspected murderer to remain free. He said public safety cannot be secured if laws and policies put criminals’ interests ahead of citizens’ protection.
“I personally am looking into ways to restart the death penalty here in North Carolina,” said Berger. “There’s been a judicially imposed moratorium on the death penalty by activist judges, doctors, attorneys general, and governors who are more interested in serving leftist political bosses than justice for victims and their families.”
Berger acknowledged that there have been previous attempts to bring back the death penalty in North Carolina, which have failed.
One specific issue that the General Assembly hopes to address is ending cashless bail. Zaruska’s alleged murderer, an individual with a prior violent felony conviction, multiple charges (at least 13 before the latest), and a history of mental health problems, was released on a written promise instead of being required to pay a secured bond. Hall asserted that cashless bail should not be an option and that they should remain in jail under a secured bond.
US Rep. Tim Moore, R-NC14, former speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives, recently announced federal legislation that would end cashless bail.
According to Hall, state Rep. Tricia Cotham, R-Mecklenburg, known for her 2023 switch from the Democratic to the Republican Party, is working closely with her colleagues in the GA and with Charlotte partners to address the issues.