North Carolina Passes ‘Iryna’s Law’ Following Fatal Stabbing in Charlotte
Legislation eliminates cashless bail, tightens pretrial release, and reignites death penalty debate.
RALEIGH — North Carolina lawmakers have passed House Bill 307, known as “Iryna’s Law,” in response to the August 22 killing of 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on a Charlotte train. The measure now heads to Gov. Josh Stein for consideration.
According to an email sent out by North Carolina State Senator Todd Johnson, the law "eliminates cashless bail, removes some magistrate and judge's discretion and imposes more incarceration safeguards for violent and repeat offenders."
Reporting from Newsweek states that the law allows for mandatory mental health evaluations and adds harsher penalties for crimes committed on public transit. It also includes a provision to revive the state’s death penalty.
Johnson's email continues:
"For first-time violent offenders, the only options are a secured bond or house arrest with electronic monitoring. For subsequent offenses, the only option for release is a secured bond and house arrest with electronic monitoring. For repeat offenders, the bill requires judicial officials to impose a secured bond or house arrest with electronic monitoring on any defendant convicted of three or more offenses in the last 10 years, regardless of the violent nature of those offenses."
“Iryna should still be alive,” Senate President Phil Berger said. “We cannot let North Carolina be held hostage by woke, weak-on-crime policies.” House Speaker Destin Hall added: “We will simply not tolerate policies that allow violent offenders back onto our streets.”
Democrats opposed the death penalty provision and criticized the bill’s use of Zarutska’s name. Sen. Mujtaba Mohammed said it “exploits grief for headlines, clicks and votes.”
Former President Donald Trump also weighed in earlier this month, calling Zarutska’s killing “a brutal ambush by a mentally deranged lunatic” and arguing that “criminals like this need to be LOCKED UP.”
Supporters say the law closes dangerous loopholes; critics argue it is a rushed political reaction. Gov. Stein’s office said he is reviewing the legislation.
DeCarlos Brown, 34, who has a history of arrests and mental illness, has been charged in Zarutska’s death and remains held without bond. His next court date is Oct. 16.
Previously, UOJ reported that more than 1,000 mourners gathered in Charlotte to honor the memory of Iryna Zarutska, who was tragically killed in a stabbing last month.
