September 9, 2025 • 31 mins
Reaction continues to mount following the Charlotte light rail murder, with statements from Mayor Vi Lyles, Governor Stein, President Trump, and Congressman Moore. Meanwhile, North Carolina judges have upheld the state’s constitutional amendments requiring voter ID and capping the income tax rate.
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
It's five oh five and welcome into a Tuesday edition
of the Carolina Journal News our Newstock eleven, ten ninety
nine three WBT. I'm Nick Craig. A good morning to you.
Well the national attention yesterday on the murder the August
the twenty seventh murder of Irena Zaruska, he got even
more a national attention with President Donald Trump commenting on
(00:29):
the situation many other national and local figures as well.
We start off this morning with a new letter from
the office of Mayor vy Lyles, The Mayor of the
City of Charlotte, reads as follows to the Charlotte Mecklenberg community.
As I reflect on the tragic murder of Irena Zaruska,
my heart continues to go out to her family and
(00:51):
our community as we try and make sense of this
horrific and senseless loss. Over the past several weeks, as
our community has worked to understand this, what we know
is that this was a tragic failure by the courts
and magistrates. Our police officers arrest people only to have
them quickly released, which undermines our ability to protect our
(01:15):
community and ensure safety. We need a bipartisan solution to
address repeat offenders who do not face consequences for their actions,
in those who cannot get treatment for their mental illness
and are not allowed to be on the streets. We
have partnered before on legislation like North Carolina's Pre Trial
(01:37):
Integrity Act, and we stand ready to partner again at
the local, state, and federal level. The letter from by
Lyles continues by saying, I want to assure the community
that we are taking action and we will continue to
take action. Noting last week, KATZ leadership presented the Charlotte
City Council and the Metropolitan Transit Commission about the ongoing
(02:01):
work to address public safety and security on our public
transit system. Over the past two years, we have doubled
the number of CAT security personnel, tripled the safety and
security budget from five point eight million to nearly eighteen
million dollars, and are shifting from a corporate security model
towards a stronger transit policing model. Effective immediately, reads the letter,
(02:27):
CAT security personnel will be redeployed for a stronger presence
on the Blue Line platforms to increase fair enforcement, that
being ticket enforcement for folks riding the light rail system.
The letter goes on to say. The Charlotte Mecklenberg Police
Department will also be increasing patrols at key areas across
(02:47):
the transit system. These changes will allow CATS to fully
execute the transit system policy plan, including the Blue Line.
Over the next two to three weeks, CATS will be
rolling out new safety operations, including bike units and urban
terrain vehicles. Katz is actively recruiting and will be adding
(03:08):
nearly thirty additional security personnel over the next few months.
Katz will also be bringing an agreement for City Council
to approve at council's next business meeting on September the
twenty second, which will expand the authority of CATS to
provide security around the transit system. Residents across our community
(03:29):
and visitors to our region depend on public transit. We
owe it to them to make our public transit system
and city safe and secure. Signed there by the Charlotte
Mayor and vy Lyles. This is a very different letter
than was released by the Mayor of Charlotte back just
a couple of weeks ago, where she spent very little
(03:50):
time talking about the actual issue at hand and spent
multiple paragraphs talking about the mental health of the alleged
killer in this horrific as at back on August the
twenty second that lead letter released yesterday published on x
from the office of Mayor vy Lyles in some other reaction,
(04:10):
finally getting some commentary in from North Carolina governor Democrat
Governor Josh Stein, who wrote around ten o'clock yesterday morning
on his ex account quote, I am heartbroken for the
family of Irena Zaruska who lost their loved ones to
this senseless act of violence, and I am appalled by
the footage of her murder. He continued by saying, we
(04:33):
need more cops on the beat to keep people safe.
That's why my budget calls for more funding to hire
more well trained police officers. I call upon the legislature
to pass my Law Enforcement Recruitment and Retention Package to
address vacancies in our state and local agencies so they
can stop horrific crimes and hold violent criminal accountables. The
(04:56):
governor getting what is called ratioed on Twitter with his
commentary yesterday, as the individual who has been alleged in
this murder was arrested and has a criminal rap sheet
that includes fourteen convictions in and around the Charlotte Mecklenburg
County area, many folks calling out the governor's comments, noting
(05:18):
that while the police did in fact do their job,
and it solely was the fact of the judicial system
allowing this individual to consistently get out of jail and
some of the other issues surrounding this case, that was
the reaction from Governor Josh Stein. President Donald Trump on
Sunday indicated that he would learn more information about this situation,
(05:39):
telling reporters at Joint Basse Andrews Sunday night that he
would comment on this situation tomorrow. That's exactly what he did,
noting in a post on truth Social yesterday afternoon, quote,
I have seen the horrific video of a beautiful young
Ukrainian refugee who came to America to escape the vicious
war in Ukraine and was innocently riding the metro in Charlotte,
(06:04):
North Carolina, where she was brutally ambushed by a mentally
deranged lunatic. The perpetrator was a well known career criminal
who had been previously arrested and released on cashless bail
in January a total of fourteen times. What the hell
was he doing riding the train and walking the streets
(06:26):
criminals like this need to be locked up. In all caps,
the blood of this innocent woman can literally be seen
dripping from the killer's knife, and now her blood is
on the hands of the Democrats who refused to put
bad people in jail, including former disgraced governor and wannabe
Senator Roy Cooper. North Carolina and every state needs law
(06:48):
and order and only Republicans will deliver it. Additionally, where
is the outrage from the mainstream media on this horrible tragedy.
Vote for Michael Watley for United States Senate. He won't
let it happen again, accompanied by a photo of Zaruska
and the alleged killer. That was the commentary from a
President Donald Trump yesterday, again continuing to follow reaction and coverage,
(07:14):
Congressman Tim Moore, who represents North Carolina's fourteenth congressional district,
which does, of course include the Charlotte metro area at
least the vast majority of it. He was on the
floor of the United States House yesterday also talking about
this situation and commenting on some legislation called Keep Violent
Criminals Off Our Streets Act. Here's the congressman yesterday in Washington,
(07:39):
d C.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Thank you mister Speaker, I rised this evening with a
heavy heart because Irena Zeruska should still be alive. She
fled Ukraine seeking safety and freedom, and instead she was
stabbed to death in a Charlotte lightrel car by a
fourteen time criminal who should never have been back on
the streets, in fact, a person who had skip bond
(08:01):
on three occasions in the past. Leftist politicians and judges
who have enabled this violent repeat offender to walk have
blood on their hands. As the representative of Charlotte and
Mecklenburg County, I'm not going to stay silent while innocent
people pay the price for broken ball policies and soft
on crime judges. That's why I'm proud to co lead
(08:22):
co Chairwoman's Stephanics Keeping Violent Offenders Off our Streets Act,
which will make it harder for violent criminals to slip
through the cracks and walk free without proper review.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
In fact, it may, in fact, even hold federal funds
away from local governments that refuse to follow the law
and allow these soft on crime policies. Folks in Charlotte
and folks throughout this entire country deserve to feel safe.
The system failed Irena and if we don't fix it now,
it will fail again. With that, mister Speaker, I yield back.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
That's Congressman Tim More serving the North North Carolina's fourteenth
congressional district. Of course, if you're familiar with that name,
former Speaker of the North Carolina House, making his way
up to Congress in a successful election back in November
of last year. Commenting on the horrific situation that unfolded
in late August on the Charlotte light rail system. A
(09:13):
lot of other reaction again coming in from this story
as it has exploded on the national news scene over
the last forty eight to thirty six hours or so.
We'll continue to track the coverage. We've got a full
story this morning on the entire situation, continuing to keep
an eye on some of that additional coverage as well.
(09:34):
All of that available this morning over on our website,
Carolina Journal dot com. We'll also get some more North
Carolina reaction coming up here as we roll on on
this Tuesday morning edition of the Carolina Journal News Hour.
It's five twenty two. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal
(09:56):
News Hour, news Stock eleven ten ninety nine to three WBT.
We cover a variety of legal challenges and updates and
ongoing lawsuits here across the state of North Carolina on
the Carolina Journal News Hour. However, this morning, we've got
a very interesting story. It dates back to votes that
people across the state of North Carolina cast in two
thousand and eighteen. To bring us up to date on
(10:17):
the details this morning, Mitch Coci with the John Locke
Foundation joins us on the Carolina Journal News Hour. Mitch,
I'm sure some folks listening this morning, though they knew
enough to the state, they weren't even part of this
election back in twenty eighteen. However, this has been an ongoing,
lengthy legal battle. What's the latest that you're tracking from
the courts.
Speaker 4 (10:35):
Yes, if people were here in North Carolina and headed
to the polls in twenty eighteen, they might remember there
were six state constitutional amendments on the ballot. North Carolinians
approved four of them and rejected to two of the
ballot amendments that were approved put voter ID into the
state constitution, saying that we found it so important that
(10:57):
people present a photo ideas apification at the polls that
it should be something that spelled out, not just in law,
but in the constitution, and the other amendments that is
the source of this litigation lowered an existing state constitutional
cap on income tax rates. The old cap was ten percent.
The amendment dropped the cap from ten percent to seven percent. Now,
(11:19):
among the four amendments that were passed, there were two others,
but among the four, those two attracted special concern from
the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP. That group
filed suit and said those two amendments were unconstitutional even
though voters approved them, because they would discriminate against black
(11:41):
voters and minorities in general. And so the case went
to a trial judge in Wake County who agreed, who said, yes,
these amendments are unconstitutional and through them out. State Court
of Appeals then heard the case, reversed that decision, said no,
these do not violate the Constitution. The voters voted for them.
(12:02):
The General Assembly was within its power to put these
on the ballot. And then the case went to the
state Supreme Court, which at the time had a democratic majority.
The democratic majority court in a series of moves that
attracted some controversy in and of itself, and we could
get into that in a bit if you'd like. But
the Democratic led state Supreme Court decided not to either
(12:28):
say the amendments were fine or to throw them out,
but kicked the case back to a trial court and said,
it is possible that constitutional amendments voted on by the
people of North Carolina and approved it'd be part of
the constitution. It is possible that they could be thrown
out of the constitution under some certain circumstances. And so
(12:50):
the case went back to a trial court to decide
whether those circumstances were met and whether those constitutional amendments
could be thrown out. That decision came down in twenty
twenty two, and it took now several years for the
case to wind its way back through the trial court.
About ten months ago, the three judge panel that was
(13:11):
overseeing this case, one Democratic judge, two Republicans, so bipartisan,
this panel heard arguments about throwing out the lawsuit, and
roughly ten months later came out with the decision saying, yes,
the lawsuit should end. The amendment should stand. The plaintiffs
did not prove that these amendments would be discriminatory in
(13:33):
an unconstitutional way against black voters and black residents. Of
North Carolina. So, barring further appeal, this case is over
and the twenty eighteen constitutional amendments for voter ID and
for lowering the caps tax cap will stand and will
remain part of the North Carolina Constitution.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
Mitch, this might sound like a stupid question, but I'm
sure some folks are scratching their head and saying, well,
I just went voted last November and I had to
show either a state issue driver's license or some other
form of legal ID. How was that in place while
this case was still playing out in the judicial system.
Speaker 4 (14:12):
It's not a stipid question at all, because there were
several different tracks in which voter ID challenges were taking.
There was this case which dealt with the Voter I
D Constitutional Amendment, and there were two other lawsuits in
both state and federal court dealing with the voter ID
law that was put in place to comply with the amendment.
(14:35):
We didn't need to have an amendment to have the
voter ID law, but once we had the amendment, as
long as the amendment stands, then we had to have
a law to implement the amendment. So, through various stages,
litigation involving both the federal courts and the state courts.
The voter ID law itself was blocked, and then eventually
(14:56):
the state Supreme Court that Succeededmocratic led state Supreme Court,
the Republican led State Supreme Court that took over after
the twenty twenty two election, said that the voter ID
law itself was fine, and once that ruling came down,
then voter ID took effect, first for the twenty twenty
(15:16):
three municipal elections and then eventually for all of the
elections in twenty twenty four. So there were various lawsuits.
This one didn't in and of itself resolve anything about
the voter ID law. But what it did say once
this idea amendment remains in effect is that North Carolina
and now if for some reason the voter ID law
(15:38):
was thrown out, we'd have to come up with another one,
because the Constitution says we have to have one. It
also has an impact in that the tax cap amendment
didn't actually have any impact on tax rates because the
tax rates were already below the new cap. But what
it does say is if a future General Assembly wants
to come back and raise the cup tax in the future,
(16:01):
there is a limit, and it's a lower limit, much
lower limit than the old limit.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
Let me ask you specifically about voter ID. Of course,
the General Assembly has all of those seats are up
every two years. We've seen in the past, just in
the last ten or fifteen years, how the power can
shift pretty dramatically. And Raleigh, Mitch, let's just play this
out a couple of years down the road, Republicans are
unsuccessful in holding their majorities, Democrats sweep back into power.
(16:28):
Does that mean that they would no longer be able
to change the voter ID law in North Carolina because
now it is enshrined in the state constitution.
Speaker 4 (16:38):
They could still change the law as long as there
would be a voter ID law. Now, our ID law,
compared to others across the country, is fairly permissive. Not
only are a bunch of different IDs counted, but as
we all know, if you have an ID, there are
ways that you can still vote, including by filling out
a form that says that there was a reasonable impediment,
(17:00):
and then your voters eventually counted if the reasonable impediment
checks out. So I don't know that there's much that
Democrats could do to make the law even more permissive
or even less restrictive, but they would have to have
some kind of voter ID law since it's part of
the constitution. That was one of the reasons why people
(17:22):
who were interested in voter ID wanted to put it
in the state constitution. They wanted to ensure that North
Carolina would have this particular piece of election integrity in place,
regardless of who's in power in the future.
Speaker 1 (17:36):
Mitch, there's a lot of backstor on this again. It
goes back to votes that happened seven years ago. Even
before it was added to the statewide ballot in twenty eighteen,
there was a lot of discussion on it. We've got
all that history and all that background this morning. It's
available on our website, Carolina Journal dot com. We appreciate
the update this morning. Mitch Kokai from the John Locke
Foundation joins us on the Carolina Journal News Hour. It's
(18:02):
by thirty seven. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News
our newstock eleven ten ninety nine three WBT keeping our
attention this morning on a huge national story that of
course exists out of the Charlotte metro area. Back on
August the twenty second, a Ukrainian refuge was murdered on
a Charlotte light rail. Her name Irena Zaruska. She was
(18:25):
allegedly murdered by the Carlos Brown Junior, a thirty four
year old that has a lengthy criminal rap sheet. As
the national attention does continue to ratchet up, getting some
initial or getting some additional commentary coming in from individuals
across the state and the nation, the Mayor of Charlotte
and Vye Lyles released a lengthy statement from the Office
(18:46):
of the Mayor yesterday reading, in part quote, over the
past several weeks, as our community has worked to understand this,
what we know is that this was a tragic failure
by the courts and magistrates. Our police officers arrest people
only to have them quickly released, which undermines our ability
to protect our community and ensure safety. We need a
(19:09):
bipartisan solution to address repeat offenders who do not face
consequences for their actions, and those who cannot get treatment
for their mental illness and are allowed to be on
the streets. We have partnered before on legislation like North
Carolina's Pre Trial Integrity Act, and we stand ready to
partner again at the local state and federal level. That
(19:33):
is part of the statement released yesterday by Mayor vy Lyles.
That's a very different statement from the ones she released
back just a couple of weeks ago, where she said, quote,
this is a tragic situation that sheds the light on
the problems with society safety nets related to mental health
care and the systems that should be in place. As
we come to understand what happened and why, we must
(19:55):
look at the entire situation. While I do not know
the specific of the man's medical records, speaking of the
alleged killer, what I have come to understand is that
he has long struggled with mental health issues and appears
to have suffered a crisis. This was an unfortunate and
tragic outcome. The mayor received some pretty significant blowback for
(20:16):
that seemingly tone deaf statement in the immediate aftermath of
the killing on the Charlotte light rail system. Governor Josh
Stein also jumping in on the conversation eighteen days after
Arena Zaruska's murder, saying quote, I am heartbroken for the
family who lost their loved ones to this senseless act
of violence, and I am appalled by the footage of
(20:38):
her murder. We need more cops on the beat to
keep people safe. That's why my budget calls for more
funding to hire more well trained police officers. I call
upon the legislature to pass my Law Enforcement Recruitment and
Retention Package to address vacancies in our state and local
agencies so that they can help. They can stick these
(21:01):
horrific crimes and hold violent criminals accountable. The governor receiving
some pretty significant blowback from that post on social media,
with many folks pointing out the criminal background and history
of de Carlos Brown Junior, as record show several prior
convictions including armed robbery, felony, larceny, breaking and entering shoplifting,
(21:23):
some happening as early as earlier this year. However, to
Carlos Brown Junior was out on the streets and was
riding the Charlotte Light rail back on the night of
August the twenty second when he allegedly murdered Irena Zaruska.
Some additional commentary coming in across the nation as well.
President Donald Trump also jumping in on the phrase, saying quote,
(21:45):
I have seen the horrific video of a beautiful young
Ukrainian refugee who came to America to escape the vicious
war in Ukraine and was innocently riding the Metro in Charlotte,
North Carolina, where she was brutally ambushed by a mentally
deranged lunatic. The perpetrator was a well known career criminal
(22:05):
who had been previously arrested and released on cashless bail
in January, a total of fourteen times. What the hell
was he doing riding the train and walking the streets.
Criminals like this need to be locked up. The blood
of this innocent woman can literally be seen dripping from
the killer's knife, and now her blood is on the
(22:26):
hands of Democrats who refuse to put bad people in jail,
including former disgraced governor and wannabe Senator Roy Cooper of
North Carolina. Ending some of the commentary there from President
Donald Trump. Wbt's news director Mark Garrison rode the light
rail system on Sunday. He filed this report yesterday talking
(22:46):
about some of the security that is continuing to lack
even after in the wake of this horrific murder back
on August the twenty second.
Speaker 5 (22:55):
They need more security on here, and as I rode
light reel for several hours, Sunday afternoon. There was a
little more security than normal train approaching. I got onto
the train and Noda and immediately saw two women and
yellow security vests on board. They were ticket checkers and
they checked mine.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
I just had the ticket off. Please sure, thank you
so much.
Speaker 5 (23:16):
Then at the next.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
Stop, this top is Seventh Street station, the.
Speaker 5 (23:19):
Young ticket checkers stood in the doorway asking everyone entering
for a ticket.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
Ticket off me.
Speaker 5 (23:26):
One homeless guy with a lot of stuff walked up,
but when he saw the woman at the door, he
turned away. But I noticed the ticket checkers weren't on here.
Very long doors are closing.
Speaker 4 (23:36):
Train is about to move.
Speaker 5 (23:38):
Both of the ticket checkers got off, and now the
train is off and running with no security on it.
The next step will be Third Street and it stayed
that way clear to the end of the line in Pineville,
no security, no ticket checks, which opened the door for
a homeless guy named Reginald, who asked me for money.
(24:00):
I have two dollars, I think I do, if you'll
talk to me. Reginald was drinking, had a beer in
a brown paper bag. That's a violation of train policy,
and he had no ticket. Has anybody checked your ticket?
Speaker 1 (24:13):
Today, that's today, But yesterday and you had one, Well no,
not really.
Speaker 5 (24:20):
Did they put you off the train?
Speaker 2 (24:22):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (24:23):
But on Sunday finding a train with no security was
no problem with so many homeless guys like Reginald on
light rail, a lot of regulars like Carlos, a passenger
I met, told me they always ride with a little
bit of fear.
Speaker 6 (24:36):
So anytime somebody sits next to me on the links,
I just literally get up.
Speaker 2 (24:40):
And sent another seat away from them, just because I
don't know what their intentions are.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
They're drugged up, drunk or something.
Speaker 5 (24:45):
Train approaching. Once we arrived at the Pineville station, two
security guards boarded. One was armed, the other was not.
The armed officers stood in the doorway at several stops
asking for tickets you to get ready for the train.
Once we were rolling, he found a guy on board
who said, I got no ticketal ticket.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
I'm gonna do write it the next time.
Speaker 3 (25:06):
You can get off there.
Speaker 5 (25:08):
So at the next stop, the ticketless guy got off.
Speaker 6 (25:10):
Doors are closing. Train is about to move.
Speaker 5 (25:13):
Then a few stops later, so did the two security guards. So,
as Katz has said, security is hit and miss. You'll
see it sometimes, but certainly not all the time, which
is what homeless guys such as Reginald they're counting on
as he rides light rail for free. So why are
you riding the train without a ticket? Goal to go
(25:35):
donate some plasmas and get some money. And as we
approached his stop, Reginald addressed the other riders with a smile.
Radio station. Guy's gonna let me hold ten dollars so I.
Speaker 1 (25:47):
Can get some the That's Mark Garrison, WBT news director,
in his experience riding the Charlotte light Rail on Sunday.
We've got additional and continued coverage over on our website
this morning, carol Journal dot com. It's five fifty three.
(26:08):
Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour. It's time
for the sixth annual WBT Little Heroes Blood Drive headed
your Way Thursday September. The eleventh WBT and the one
Blood Big Red Bus will be at the brand new
Woodies Auto Service in Rockhill from ten am to three pm.
We'll be broadcasting live and are encouraging you to make
a life saving blood donation. It's the sixth annual WBT
(26:32):
Little Heroes Blood Drive headed your way Thursday, September the
eleventh at Woody's Auto Service in Rockhill. Visit WBT dot
com for location details and to register your appointment. Again
those details at WBT dot com. It's now five point
fifty three. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour
as we continue to watch reaction unfolding and coming across
(26:54):
the United States into the Charlotte metro area after the
August the twenty second murder of twenty three year old
Irena Zaruska. Some additional commentary coming in from the Transportation
Secretary in Sean Duffy. He was on with Sean Hannity's
at Fox News last night and had this to say
about the horrific situation that unfolded on the Charlotte light ray.
Speaker 6 (27:16):
You know, the President said these are evil people, and
he's right, but it's also evil politicians like the mayor
of the city Council, of the DA the governor in
North Carolina. Evil people with evil policies that are actually
destroying communities. So the problem, Sean is a lot of
people like the rich liberal they can't ride uber, they
don't have a driver, they don't have a vehicle. They
(27:38):
actually have to write public transportation and public transportation has
become an epidemic of violence and homelessness across the country,
and so we don't have a ton of equities at DOT,
but we.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
Do have money.
Speaker 6 (27:50):
Your federal tax dollars go to fund a lot of
these transit systems across the country, and we have to
look at them and say, well, maybe it's appropriate if
we start pulling some of that money back, because I
don't think the American taxpayer wants to pay for the
homelessness and criminal element that harm little twenty three year
old girls like this who are going home from rook
from order to.
Speaker 7 (28:10):
Pizza that they're gonna get stabbed in the neck, and
Liberals want to hide that story so you and I
don't talk about it, so the American people don't know
that their failed policies don't work for the American people.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
That's Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on the Fox News channel
last night, getting some reaction in from North Carolina as well.
House Speaker Destin Hall commenting on X yesterday saying, here's
a crazy idea, stop coddling violent criminals and actually enforce
the damn law IRENA's murder had been. IRENA's murderer had
(28:42):
been arrested fourteen times. Social justice warriors in the judicial system.
Let him back out onto the streets. Time to clean
up the courts, and we'll wait and see. As the
North Carolina General Assembly is expected to be back in
Raleigh coming up here at the end of this month,
we'll see if there is any any legislation that it
does come forward after this horrific situation that unfolded in Charlotte.
(29:05):
As it continues to get an unbelievable amount of national
attention in Politico yesterday as well, some additional commentary coming in.
A spokesperson for the Roy Cooper campaign had this to say, quote,
Roy Cooper knows North Carolinians need to be safe in
their communities. He spent his career prosecuting violent criminals and
(29:27):
drug dealers, increasing the penalty for violence against law enforcement,
and keeping thousands of criminals off the streets and behind bars.
That's the quote there from Kate Smart, who is working
with the Roy Cooper campaign. No comment at least as
of this morning, from the former governor turned Senate candidate himself.
As we continue to watch the reaction unfold across the
(29:51):
United States. Again, some of the big store that of course,
the big story that we continue to track this morning,
a continued national coverage all across the political spectrum on
the August the twenty second murder of Irena Zaruska. She
was allegedly murdered by Carlos Brown Junior, a thirty four
year old with a lengthy criminal track record, on a
(30:14):
Charlotte lightrail system. We've got some additional coverage and some
of that updated reaction over on our website this morning,
Carolina Journal dot com. That headline story Charlotte lightrail murder
gets at national attention. Well that's going to do it
for a Tuesday edition of The Carolina Journal News Hour.
Continued coverage as we continue here on WBT. WBT News
(30:36):
is next, followed by Good Morning BT. We're back with
you tomorrow morning, five to six right here, News Talk eleven,
ten and ninety nine to three WBT
It's five oh five and welcome into a Tuesday edition
of the Carolina Journal News our Newstock eleven, ten ninety
nine three WBT. I'm Nick Craig. A good morning to you.
Well the national attention yesterday on the murder the August
the twenty seventh murder of Irena Zaruska, he got even
more a national attention with President Donald Trump commenting on
(00:29):
the situation many other national and local figures as well.
We start off this morning with a new letter from
the office of Mayor vy Lyles, The Mayor of the
City of Charlotte, reads as follows to the Charlotte Mecklenberg community.
As I reflect on the tragic murder of Irena Zaruska,
my heart continues to go out to her family and
(00:51):
our community as we try and make sense of this
horrific and senseless loss. Over the past several weeks, as
our community has worked to understand this, what we know
is that this was a tragic failure by the courts
and magistrates. Our police officers arrest people only to have
them quickly released, which undermines our ability to protect our
(01:15):
community and ensure safety. We need a bipartisan solution to
address repeat offenders who do not face consequences for their actions,
in those who cannot get treatment for their mental illness
and are not allowed to be on the streets. We
have partnered before on legislation like North Carolina's Pre Trial
(01:37):
Integrity Act, and we stand ready to partner again at
the local, state, and federal level. The letter from by
Lyles continues by saying, I want to assure the community
that we are taking action and we will continue to
take action. Noting last week, KATZ leadership presented the Charlotte
City Council and the Metropolitan Transit Commission about the ongoing
(02:01):
work to address public safety and security on our public
transit system. Over the past two years, we have doubled
the number of CAT security personnel, tripled the safety and
security budget from five point eight million to nearly eighteen
million dollars, and are shifting from a corporate security model
towards a stronger transit policing model. Effective immediately, reads the letter,
(02:27):
CAT security personnel will be redeployed for a stronger presence
on the Blue Line platforms to increase fair enforcement, that
being ticket enforcement for folks riding the light rail system.
The letter goes on to say. The Charlotte Mecklenberg Police
Department will also be increasing patrols at key areas across
(02:47):
the transit system. These changes will allow CATS to fully
execute the transit system policy plan, including the Blue Line.
Over the next two to three weeks, CATS will be
rolling out new safety operations, including bike units and urban
terrain vehicles. Katz is actively recruiting and will be adding
(03:08):
nearly thirty additional security personnel over the next few months.
Katz will also be bringing an agreement for City Council
to approve at council's next business meeting on September the
twenty second, which will expand the authority of CATS to
provide security around the transit system. Residents across our community
(03:29):
and visitors to our region depend on public transit. We
owe it to them to make our public transit system
and city safe and secure. Signed there by the Charlotte
Mayor and vy Lyles. This is a very different letter
than was released by the Mayor of Charlotte back just
a couple of weeks ago, where she spent very little
(03:50):
time talking about the actual issue at hand and spent
multiple paragraphs talking about the mental health of the alleged
killer in this horrific as at back on August the
twenty second that lead letter released yesterday published on x
from the office of Mayor vy Lyles in some other reaction,
(04:10):
finally getting some commentary in from North Carolina governor Democrat
Governor Josh Stein, who wrote around ten o'clock yesterday morning
on his ex account quote, I am heartbroken for the
family of Irena Zaruska who lost their loved ones to
this senseless act of violence, and I am appalled by
the footage of her murder. He continued by saying, we
(04:33):
need more cops on the beat to keep people safe.
That's why my budget calls for more funding to hire
more well trained police officers. I call upon the legislature
to pass my Law Enforcement Recruitment and Retention Package to
address vacancies in our state and local agencies so they
can stop horrific crimes and hold violent criminal accountables. The
(04:56):
governor getting what is called ratioed on Twitter with his
commentary yesterday, as the individual who has been alleged in
this murder was arrested and has a criminal rap sheet
that includes fourteen convictions in and around the Charlotte Mecklenburg
County area, many folks calling out the governor's comments, noting
(05:18):
that while the police did in fact do their job,
and it solely was the fact of the judicial system
allowing this individual to consistently get out of jail and
some of the other issues surrounding this case, that was
the reaction from Governor Josh Stein. President Donald Trump on
Sunday indicated that he would learn more information about this situation,
(05:39):
telling reporters at Joint Basse Andrews Sunday night that he
would comment on this situation tomorrow. That's exactly what he did,
noting in a post on truth Social yesterday afternoon, quote,
I have seen the horrific video of a beautiful young
Ukrainian refugee who came to America to escape the vicious
war in Ukraine and was innocently riding the metro in Charlotte,
(06:04):
North Carolina, where she was brutally ambushed by a mentally
deranged lunatic. The perpetrator was a well known career criminal
who had been previously arrested and released on cashless bail
in January a total of fourteen times. What the hell
was he doing riding the train and walking the streets
(06:26):
criminals like this need to be locked up. In all caps,
the blood of this innocent woman can literally be seen
dripping from the killer's knife, and now her blood is
on the hands of the Democrats who refused to put
bad people in jail, including former disgraced governor and wannabe
Senator Roy Cooper. North Carolina and every state needs law
(06:48):
and order and only Republicans will deliver it. Additionally, where
is the outrage from the mainstream media on this horrible tragedy.
Vote for Michael Watley for United States Senate. He won't
let it happen again, accompanied by a photo of Zaruska
and the alleged killer. That was the commentary from a
President Donald Trump yesterday, again continuing to follow reaction and coverage,
(07:14):
Congressman Tim Moore, who represents North Carolina's fourteenth congressional district,
which does, of course include the Charlotte metro area at
least the vast majority of it. He was on the
floor of the United States House yesterday also talking about
this situation and commenting on some legislation called Keep Violent
Criminals Off Our Streets Act. Here's the congressman yesterday in Washington,
(07:39):
d C.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Thank you mister Speaker, I rised this evening with a
heavy heart because Irena Zeruska should still be alive. She
fled Ukraine seeking safety and freedom, and instead she was
stabbed to death in a Charlotte lightrel car by a
fourteen time criminal who should never have been back on
the streets, in fact, a person who had skip bond
(08:01):
on three occasions in the past. Leftist politicians and judges
who have enabled this violent repeat offender to walk have
blood on their hands. As the representative of Charlotte and
Mecklenburg County, I'm not going to stay silent while innocent
people pay the price for broken ball policies and soft
on crime judges. That's why I'm proud to co lead
(08:22):
co Chairwoman's Stephanics Keeping Violent Offenders Off our Streets Act,
which will make it harder for violent criminals to slip
through the cracks and walk free without proper review.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
In fact, it may, in fact, even hold federal funds
away from local governments that refuse to follow the law
and allow these soft on crime policies. Folks in Charlotte
and folks throughout this entire country deserve to feel safe.
The system failed Irena and if we don't fix it now,
it will fail again. With that, mister Speaker, I yield back.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
That's Congressman Tim More serving the North North Carolina's fourteenth
congressional district. Of course, if you're familiar with that name,
former Speaker of the North Carolina House, making his way
up to Congress in a successful election back in November
of last year. Commenting on the horrific situation that unfolded
in late August on the Charlotte light rail system. A
(09:13):
lot of other reaction again coming in from this story
as it has exploded on the national news scene over
the last forty eight to thirty six hours or so.
We'll continue to track the coverage. We've got a full
story this morning on the entire situation, continuing to keep
an eye on some of that additional coverage as well.
(09:34):
All of that available this morning over on our website,
Carolina Journal dot com. We'll also get some more North
Carolina reaction coming up here as we roll on on
this Tuesday morning edition of the Carolina Journal News Hour.
It's five twenty two. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal
(09:56):
News Hour, news Stock eleven ten ninety nine to three WBT.
We cover a variety of legal challenges and updates and
ongoing lawsuits here across the state of North Carolina on
the Carolina Journal News Hour. However, this morning, we've got
a very interesting story. It dates back to votes that
people across the state of North Carolina cast in two
thousand and eighteen. To bring us up to date on
(10:17):
the details this morning, Mitch Coci with the John Locke
Foundation joins us on the Carolina Journal News Hour. Mitch,
I'm sure some folks listening this morning, though they knew
enough to the state, they weren't even part of this
election back in twenty eighteen. However, this has been an ongoing,
lengthy legal battle. What's the latest that you're tracking from
the courts.
Speaker 4 (10:35):
Yes, if people were here in North Carolina and headed
to the polls in twenty eighteen, they might remember there
were six state constitutional amendments on the ballot. North Carolinians
approved four of them and rejected to two of the
ballot amendments that were approved put voter ID into the
state constitution, saying that we found it so important that
(10:57):
people present a photo ideas apification at the polls that
it should be something that spelled out, not just in law,
but in the constitution, and the other amendments that is
the source of this litigation lowered an existing state constitutional
cap on income tax rates. The old cap was ten percent.
The amendment dropped the cap from ten percent to seven percent. Now,
(11:19):
among the four amendments that were passed, there were two others,
but among the four, those two attracted special concern from
the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP. That group
filed suit and said those two amendments were unconstitutional even
though voters approved them, because they would discriminate against black
(11:41):
voters and minorities in general. And so the case went
to a trial judge in Wake County who agreed, who said, yes,
these amendments are unconstitutional and through them out. State Court
of Appeals then heard the case, reversed that decision, said no,
these do not violate the Constitution. The voters voted for them.
(12:02):
The General Assembly was within its power to put these
on the ballot. And then the case went to the
state Supreme Court, which at the time had a democratic majority.
The democratic majority court in a series of moves that
attracted some controversy in and of itself, and we could
get into that in a bit if you'd like. But
the Democratic led state Supreme Court decided not to either
(12:28):
say the amendments were fine or to throw them out,
but kicked the case back to a trial court and said,
it is possible that constitutional amendments voted on by the
people of North Carolina and approved it'd be part of
the constitution. It is possible that they could be thrown
out of the constitution under some certain circumstances. And so
(12:50):
the case went back to a trial court to decide
whether those circumstances were met and whether those constitutional amendments
could be thrown out. That decision came down in twenty
twenty two, and it took now several years for the
case to wind its way back through the trial court.
About ten months ago, the three judge panel that was
(13:11):
overseeing this case, one Democratic judge, two Republicans, so bipartisan,
this panel heard arguments about throwing out the lawsuit, and
roughly ten months later came out with the decision saying, yes,
the lawsuit should end. The amendment should stand. The plaintiffs
did not prove that these amendments would be discriminatory in
(13:33):
an unconstitutional way against black voters and black residents. Of
North Carolina. So, barring further appeal, this case is over
and the twenty eighteen constitutional amendments for voter ID and
for lowering the caps tax cap will stand and will
remain part of the North Carolina Constitution.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
Mitch, this might sound like a stupid question, but I'm
sure some folks are scratching their head and saying, well,
I just went voted last November and I had to
show either a state issue driver's license or some other
form of legal ID. How was that in place while
this case was still playing out in the judicial system.
Speaker 4 (14:12):
It's not a stipid question at all, because there were
several different tracks in which voter ID challenges were taking.
There was this case which dealt with the Voter I
D Constitutional Amendment, and there were two other lawsuits in
both state and federal court dealing with the voter ID
law that was put in place to comply with the amendment.
(14:35):
We didn't need to have an amendment to have the
voter ID law, but once we had the amendment, as
long as the amendment stands, then we had to have
a law to implement the amendment. So, through various stages,
litigation involving both the federal courts and the state courts.
The voter ID law itself was blocked, and then eventually
(14:56):
the state Supreme Court that Succeededmocratic led state Supreme Court,
the Republican led State Supreme Court that took over after
the twenty twenty two election, said that the voter ID
law itself was fine, and once that ruling came down,
then voter ID took effect, first for the twenty twenty
(15:16):
three municipal elections and then eventually for all of the
elections in twenty twenty four. So there were various lawsuits.
This one didn't in and of itself resolve anything about
the voter ID law. But what it did say once
this idea amendment remains in effect is that North Carolina
and now if for some reason the voter ID law
(15:38):
was thrown out, we'd have to come up with another one,
because the Constitution says we have to have one. It
also has an impact in that the tax cap amendment
didn't actually have any impact on tax rates because the
tax rates were already below the new cap. But what
it does say is if a future General Assembly wants
to come back and raise the cup tax in the future,
(16:01):
there is a limit, and it's a lower limit, much
lower limit than the old limit.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
Let me ask you specifically about voter ID. Of course,
the General Assembly has all of those seats are up
every two years. We've seen in the past, just in
the last ten or fifteen years, how the power can
shift pretty dramatically. And Raleigh, Mitch, let's just play this
out a couple of years down the road, Republicans are
unsuccessful in holding their majorities, Democrats sweep back into power.
(16:28):
Does that mean that they would no longer be able
to change the voter ID law in North Carolina because
now it is enshrined in the state constitution.
Speaker 4 (16:38):
They could still change the law as long as there
would be a voter ID law. Now, our ID law,
compared to others across the country, is fairly permissive. Not
only are a bunch of different IDs counted, but as
we all know, if you have an ID, there are
ways that you can still vote, including by filling out
a form that says that there was a reasonable impediment,
(17:00):
and then your voters eventually counted if the reasonable impediment
checks out. So I don't know that there's much that
Democrats could do to make the law even more permissive
or even less restrictive, but they would have to have
some kind of voter ID law since it's part of
the constitution. That was one of the reasons why people
(17:22):
who were interested in voter ID wanted to put it
in the state constitution. They wanted to ensure that North
Carolina would have this particular piece of election integrity in place,
regardless of who's in power in the future.
Speaker 1 (17:36):
Mitch, there's a lot of backstor on this again. It
goes back to votes that happened seven years ago. Even
before it was added to the statewide ballot in twenty eighteen,
there was a lot of discussion on it. We've got
all that history and all that background this morning. It's
available on our website, Carolina Journal dot com. We appreciate
the update this morning. Mitch Kokai from the John Locke
Foundation joins us on the Carolina Journal News Hour. It's
(18:02):
by thirty seven. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News
our newstock eleven ten ninety nine three WBT keeping our
attention this morning on a huge national story that of
course exists out of the Charlotte metro area. Back on
August the twenty second, a Ukrainian refuge was murdered on
a Charlotte light rail. Her name Irena Zaruska. She was
(18:25):
allegedly murdered by the Carlos Brown Junior, a thirty four
year old that has a lengthy criminal rap sheet. As
the national attention does continue to ratchet up, getting some
initial or getting some additional commentary coming in from individuals
across the state and the nation, the Mayor of Charlotte
and Vye Lyles released a lengthy statement from the Office
(18:46):
of the Mayor yesterday reading, in part quote, over the
past several weeks, as our community has worked to understand this,
what we know is that this was a tragic failure
by the courts and magistrates. Our police officers arrest people
only to have them quickly released, which undermines our ability
to protect our community and ensure safety. We need a
(19:09):
bipartisan solution to address repeat offenders who do not face
consequences for their actions, and those who cannot get treatment
for their mental illness and are allowed to be on
the streets. We have partnered before on legislation like North
Carolina's Pre Trial Integrity Act, and we stand ready to
partner again at the local state and federal level. That
(19:33):
is part of the statement released yesterday by Mayor vy Lyles.
That's a very different statement from the ones she released
back just a couple of weeks ago, where she said, quote,
this is a tragic situation that sheds the light on
the problems with society safety nets related to mental health
care and the systems that should be in place. As
we come to understand what happened and why, we must
(19:55):
look at the entire situation. While I do not know
the specific of the man's medical records, speaking of the
alleged killer, what I have come to understand is that
he has long struggled with mental health issues and appears
to have suffered a crisis. This was an unfortunate and
tragic outcome. The mayor received some pretty significant blowback for
(20:16):
that seemingly tone deaf statement in the immediate aftermath of
the killing on the Charlotte light rail system. Governor Josh
Stein also jumping in on the conversation eighteen days after
Arena Zaruska's murder, saying quote, I am heartbroken for the
family who lost their loved ones to this senseless act
of violence, and I am appalled by the footage of
(20:38):
her murder. We need more cops on the beat to
keep people safe. That's why my budget calls for more
funding to hire more well trained police officers. I call
upon the legislature to pass my Law Enforcement Recruitment and
Retention Package to address vacancies in our state and local
agencies so that they can help. They can stick these
(21:01):
horrific crimes and hold violent criminals accountable. The governor receiving
some pretty significant blowback from that post on social media,
with many folks pointing out the criminal background and history
of de Carlos Brown Junior, as record show several prior
convictions including armed robbery, felony, larceny, breaking and entering shoplifting,
(21:23):
some happening as early as earlier this year. However, to
Carlos Brown Junior was out on the streets and was
riding the Charlotte Light rail back on the night of
August the twenty second when he allegedly murdered Irena Zaruska.
Some additional commentary coming in across the nation as well.
President Donald Trump also jumping in on the phrase, saying quote,
(21:45):
I have seen the horrific video of a beautiful young
Ukrainian refugee who came to America to escape the vicious
war in Ukraine and was innocently riding the Metro in Charlotte,
North Carolina, where she was brutally ambushed by a mentally
deranged lunatic. The perpetrator was a well known career criminal
(22:05):
who had been previously arrested and released on cashless bail
in January, a total of fourteen times. What the hell
was he doing riding the train and walking the streets.
Criminals like this need to be locked up. The blood
of this innocent woman can literally be seen dripping from
the killer's knife, and now her blood is on the
(22:26):
hands of Democrats who refuse to put bad people in jail,
including former disgraced governor and wannabe Senator Roy Cooper of
North Carolina. Ending some of the commentary there from President
Donald Trump. Wbt's news director Mark Garrison rode the light
rail system on Sunday. He filed this report yesterday talking
(22:46):
about some of the security that is continuing to lack
even after in the wake of this horrific murder back
on August the twenty second.
Speaker 5 (22:55):
They need more security on here, and as I rode
light reel for several hours, Sunday afternoon. There was a
little more security than normal train approaching. I got onto
the train and Noda and immediately saw two women and
yellow security vests on board. They were ticket checkers and
they checked mine.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
I just had the ticket off. Please sure, thank you
so much.
Speaker 5 (23:16):
Then at the next.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
Stop, this top is Seventh Street station, the.
Speaker 5 (23:19):
Young ticket checkers stood in the doorway asking everyone entering
for a ticket.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
Ticket off me.
Speaker 5 (23:26):
One homeless guy with a lot of stuff walked up,
but when he saw the woman at the door, he
turned away. But I noticed the ticket checkers weren't on here.
Very long doors are closing.
Speaker 4 (23:36):
Train is about to move.
Speaker 5 (23:38):
Both of the ticket checkers got off, and now the
train is off and running with no security on it.
The next step will be Third Street and it stayed
that way clear to the end of the line in Pineville,
no security, no ticket checks, which opened the door for
a homeless guy named Reginald, who asked me for money.
(24:00):
I have two dollars, I think I do, if you'll
talk to me. Reginald was drinking, had a beer in
a brown paper bag. That's a violation of train policy,
and he had no ticket. Has anybody checked your ticket?
Speaker 1 (24:13):
Today, that's today, But yesterday and you had one, Well no,
not really.
Speaker 5 (24:20):
Did they put you off the train?
Speaker 2 (24:22):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (24:23):
But on Sunday finding a train with no security was
no problem with so many homeless guys like Reginald on
light rail, a lot of regulars like Carlos, a passenger
I met, told me they always ride with a little
bit of fear.
Speaker 6 (24:36):
So anytime somebody sits next to me on the links,
I just literally get up.
Speaker 2 (24:40):
And sent another seat away from them, just because I
don't know what their intentions are.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
They're drugged up, drunk or something.
Speaker 5 (24:45):
Train approaching. Once we arrived at the Pineville station, two
security guards boarded. One was armed, the other was not.
The armed officers stood in the doorway at several stops
asking for tickets you to get ready for the train.
Once we were rolling, he found a guy on board
who said, I got no ticketal ticket.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
I'm gonna do write it the next time.
Speaker 3 (25:06):
You can get off there.
Speaker 5 (25:08):
So at the next stop, the ticketless guy got off.
Speaker 6 (25:10):
Doors are closing. Train is about to move.
Speaker 5 (25:13):
Then a few stops later, so did the two security guards. So,
as Katz has said, security is hit and miss. You'll
see it sometimes, but certainly not all the time, which
is what homeless guys such as Reginald they're counting on
as he rides light rail for free. So why are
you riding the train without a ticket? Goal to go
(25:35):
donate some plasmas and get some money. And as we
approached his stop, Reginald addressed the other riders with a smile.
Radio station. Guy's gonna let me hold ten dollars so I.
Speaker 1 (25:47):
Can get some the That's Mark Garrison, WBT news director,
in his experience riding the Charlotte light Rail on Sunday.
We've got additional and continued coverage over on our website
this morning, carol Journal dot com. It's five fifty three.
(26:08):
Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour. It's time
for the sixth annual WBT Little Heroes Blood Drive headed
your Way Thursday September. The eleventh WBT and the one
Blood Big Red Bus will be at the brand new
Woodies Auto Service in Rockhill from ten am to three pm.
We'll be broadcasting live and are encouraging you to make
a life saving blood donation. It's the sixth annual WBT
(26:32):
Little Heroes Blood Drive headed your way Thursday, September the
eleventh at Woody's Auto Service in Rockhill. Visit WBT dot
com for location details and to register your appointment. Again
those details at WBT dot com. It's now five point
fifty three. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour
as we continue to watch reaction unfolding and coming across
(26:54):
the United States into the Charlotte metro area after the
August the twenty second murder of twenty three year old
Irena Zaruska. Some additional commentary coming in from the Transportation
Secretary in Sean Duffy. He was on with Sean Hannity's
at Fox News last night and had this to say
about the horrific situation that unfolded on the Charlotte light ray.
Speaker 6 (27:16):
You know, the President said these are evil people, and
he's right, but it's also evil politicians like the mayor
of the city Council, of the DA the governor in
North Carolina. Evil people with evil policies that are actually
destroying communities. So the problem, Sean is a lot of
people like the rich liberal they can't ride uber, they
don't have a driver, they don't have a vehicle. They
(27:38):
actually have to write public transportation and public transportation has
become an epidemic of violence and homelessness across the country,
and so we don't have a ton of equities at DOT,
but we.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
Do have money.
Speaker 6 (27:50):
Your federal tax dollars go to fund a lot of
these transit systems across the country, and we have to
look at them and say, well, maybe it's appropriate if
we start pulling some of that money back, because I
don't think the American taxpayer wants to pay for the
homelessness and criminal element that harm little twenty three year
old girls like this who are going home from rook
from order to.
Speaker 7 (28:10):
Pizza that they're gonna get stabbed in the neck, and
Liberals want to hide that story so you and I
don't talk about it, so the American people don't know
that their failed policies don't work for the American people.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
That's Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on the Fox News channel
last night, getting some reaction in from North Carolina as well.
House Speaker Destin Hall commenting on X yesterday saying, here's
a crazy idea, stop coddling violent criminals and actually enforce
the damn law IRENA's murder had been. IRENA's murderer had
(28:42):
been arrested fourteen times. Social justice warriors in the judicial system.
Let him back out onto the streets. Time to clean
up the courts, and we'll wait and see. As the
North Carolina General Assembly is expected to be back in
Raleigh coming up here at the end of this month,
we'll see if there is any any legislation that it
does come forward after this horrific situation that unfolded in Charlotte.
(29:05):
As it continues to get an unbelievable amount of national
attention in Politico yesterday as well, some additional commentary coming in.
A spokesperson for the Roy Cooper campaign had this to say, quote,
Roy Cooper knows North Carolinians need to be safe in
their communities. He spent his career prosecuting violent criminals and
(29:27):
drug dealers, increasing the penalty for violence against law enforcement,
and keeping thousands of criminals off the streets and behind bars.
That's the quote there from Kate Smart, who is working
with the Roy Cooper campaign. No comment at least as
of this morning, from the former governor turned Senate candidate himself.
As we continue to watch the reaction unfold across the
(29:51):
United States. Again, some of the big store that of course,
the big story that we continue to track this morning,
a continued national coverage all across the political spectrum on
the August the twenty second murder of Irena Zaruska. She
was allegedly murdered by Carlos Brown Junior, a thirty four
year old with a lengthy criminal track record, on a
(30:14):
Charlotte lightrail system. We've got some additional coverage and some
of that updated reaction over on our website this morning,
Carolina Journal dot com. That headline story Charlotte lightrail murder
gets at national attention. Well that's going to do it
for a Tuesday edition of The Carolina Journal News Hour.
Continued coverage as we continue here on WBT. WBT News
(30:36):
is next, followed by Good Morning BT. We're back with
you tomorrow morning, five to six right here, News Talk eleven,
ten and ninety nine to three WBT
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Cardiac Cowboys
The heart was always off-limits to surgeons. Cutting into it spelled instant death for the patient. That is, until a ragtag group of doctors scattered across the Midwest and Texas decided to throw out the rule book. Working in makeshift laboratories and home garages, using medical devices made from scavenged machine parts and beer tubes, these men and women invented the field of open heart surgery. Odds are, someone you know is alive because of them. So why has history left them behind? Presented by Chris Pine, CARDIAC COWBOYS tells the gripping true story behind the birth of heart surgery, and the young, Greatest Generation doctors who made it happen. For years, they competed and feuded, racing to be the first, the best, and the most prolific. Some appeared on the cover of Time Magazine, operated on kings and advised presidents. Others ended up disgraced, penniless, and convicted of felonies. Together, they ignited a revolution in medicine, and changed the world.