September 24, 2025 • 31 mins
The North Carolina House has passed Iryna’s Law, with strong remarks from Rep. Tricia Cotham and Rep. Brenden Jones. The legislation advances just a month after the Charlotte light rail murder of Iryna Zarutska. Lawmakers also passed a political terrorism bill in response to the assassination of Charlie Kirk, seeking tougher penalties for politically motivated violence. Meanwhile, polling shows a large majority of voters support school choice, and momentum is building behind a new federal tax-credit scholarship program.
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
It's five oh five and welcome into a Wednesday edition
of The Carolina Journal News Hour, Newstock eleven, ten ninety
nine three WBT. I'm Nick Craig, A good morning to you.
The murder of Irena Zaruska, back a little over one
month ago, has continued to be a major political topic
across the state of North Carolina and the North Carolina House.
(00:30):
The General Assembly, back in session this week dealt with
House Built three seven, that is IRENA's Law. The description
of that legislation and some of the open to that
was given by Representative Tricia Cotham, previously a Democrat, now
a Republican, which serves portions of Mecklenburg County.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
She got on our light rail in Charlotte after long
days of work, and she was tragically murdered by a
deranged monster. I'm sure she was looking forward to going
(01:11):
home just to get out to go to work the
next day, but she never made it. This sweet and
beautiful young woman was full of potential and a monster
who already had fourteen previous convictions, including and not limited
(01:38):
to armed rawbery, felony, larceny, and the list goes on.
A diagnosed schizophrenic. He was released by a magistrate without
a secured bond, and the magistrate ignored all the very
obvious red flag, including his erotic behavior just recently before
(02:06):
this event that the police brought forward. He joined the
city streets of Charlotte with nothing but a piece of
paper where he promised on his honor, which he had
none to return about to court.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
That's Representative Tricia Cotham describing the detailing rather the situation
that led up to the murder of the twenty three
year old Ukrainian refugee back on August the twenty second
that happened on the Charlotte light rail. The person in
discussion the suspect who is in custody and has been
in custody since the night of the alleged killing, De
(02:47):
Carlos Brown Junior, as the representative from Mecklenburg County, described
a lengthy political record, and she didn't mince many words.
She said, there's just no excuse as to why he
was even out.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
He should have. I've never been allowed out of the jail.
The catch and release practices for violent offenders will end
today with your support. This heineous act was preventable and
is a direct result of judicial officials being too soft
(03:21):
on crime and allowing too many criminals to have a
revolving door that come into our neighborhoods and into our communities.
These violent offenders are wreaking havoc, not just in Charlotte,
but all over our North Carolina and in everyone's district.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
Representative Cotham really hitting in on a major discussion nationally
as well as it relates to crime in big Democrat
cities across the United States, Charlotte Mecklenburg County being one
of those. After providing some contacts and some details on
the case, the representative from Mecklenburg County described some of
the pieces of this legislation House built three oh seven,
(04:10):
which is an aptly named Arena's Law.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
We must keep our criminals who commit these dangerous crimes
behind bars and off our streets. We must ensure that
judges consider assault offenses during pre trial release process. We
must ensure, and this will be a new addition, that
(04:35):
any crime, any and all crimes that include that you
must be on a registry, any sex offense, statutory rape
of a child, rape wooded too, that you will now
this will be a part of the pre trial release.
These eighteen crimes include, and are not limited to, first
(04:57):
and second degree kidnapping, human traffic, first degree, burglary first
degree are scene shooting up a house or dwelling or
your business, assault with a deadly weapon, robbery with fire arms, trafficking,
human trafficking, fitt and all death by distribution of a
(05:19):
controlled substance, breaking and entering with a terrorized to injure
or caused harm. So now all of those will be
included in the pre trial release. We must eliminate the
condition of a release of a defendant on the written
promise to appear. It is astounding to me that a
(05:42):
man with a monster with fourteen previous convictions, who has
known mental health was homeless. His get out a free
car was literally a written piece of paper where he
said I'll be back. That's wrong. That ends today. If
you support this bill, no more gentle reminders to come
(06:08):
back to court. Defendants with three or more offenses of
our Class one misdemeanors within the last ten years, they
will now have to have a secured bond or house arrest.
We must hold our judges accountable by requiring them to
(06:30):
write a written statement of facts that will go into
the record of the case. Why did you release this person?
What was your thinking. That's accountability, that's transparency. We deserve
to know that victims' families deserve. We also added in
(06:52):
here if a murder occurred on public transportation, the district
attorney may use that as an aggravating factor in a
murder case. We will create additional accountability for magistrates by
allowing the Chief Justice to initiate suspension of a magistrate.
(07:18):
We will direct the Administrative Office of the Courts to
create rules of conduct for magistrates that address conflicts of interest.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
That's Representative Tricia Cotham. She is a Republican out of
Mecklenburg County, where the Heinous Act took place back on
August the twenty second, describing some of the details of
House Built three oh seven Arena's law. It is a wide,
sweeping crime bill and eliminates cashless bail for a vast
majority of offenses across the state of North Carolina, of
(07:55):
which she recapped, restricts judicial restricts judicial discretion in granting
pre trial releases for criminals, and creates a new category
of violent offenses of those which, if they are released
pre trial would require GPS monitoring or some sort of tracking,
including house arrests or a secured bond for those individuals.
(08:18):
The legislation also mandates mental health evaluations in specific cases,
titans deadlines on the death penalty appeal, and adds committing
a capital felony on public transportation to the list of
aggregating factors that can make a defendant eligible for the
death penalty. As you just heard there from Representative Cotham,
(08:39):
Republican leaders say these changes are designed to ensure that
violent and repeat offenders remain off the streets in North Carolina,
while holding magistrates and other judicial officials more accountable for
the decisions they make. Predominantly when we are discussing and
having this discussion about somebody like de Carlos Brown June,
(09:00):
who was a fourteen time repeat criminal and had been
unfortunately a kind of a revolving door within the judicial system.
That obviously not everybody in Raleigh in favor of this
legislation going through, at least as proposed as written. We'll
get into some some comments from other members across the
(09:21):
various political aisles in Raleigh coming up here in just
a couple of minutes. It's five, twenty one. Welcome back
to the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Talk eleven ten
ninety nine to three WBT, as we continue our coverage
this morning of a busy Wednesday in the North Carolina
(09:42):
General Assembly, as the North Carolina House did gavel in
yesterday afternoon to discuss a variety of issues. The biggest
one and the one that is even getting national attention
and coverage this morning, House Bill three oh seven. This
is known as IRENA's Law. It is in response direct
response to the August twenty second murder of Irena Zaruska,
(10:03):
a twenty three year old Ukrainian immigrant who was murdered
on the Charlotte light Rail by the Carlos Brown Junior.
That individual is in custody, has been in custody since
the acts on the Charlotte light Rail and really one
of the topics of conversation of around this is to
Carlos Brown Junior's lengthy criminal rap sheet which includes several
(10:24):
fourteen prior convictions including some very serious things armed robbery, felony, larceny,
breaking and entering. The list goes on for the thirty
four year old alleged a killer into this case. And
while we heard the open from a Representative Trisha Cotham,
and many Republicans in the General Assembly supporting this. Not
all members of the General Assembly were, including Democrat Representative
(10:48):
Marcia Moray out of Durham County, who seemingly blamed local
law enforcement in Charlotte for allowing this situation to take place. Anyway,
we were all appalled.
Speaker 3 (11:02):
In shock, and I would say this crime probably could
not have been prevented. There was an officer twenty feet away.
Was he able to jump into the car and stop it? No,
many of us have seen the horrible video. It was
about three seconds. And yet we talk about the person
(11:27):
alleged in this crime, how he got out on a
promise to appear, even though that was eight months before
this happened in Charlotte, eight months And why was he
brought before a magistrate in January because he was at
a hospital saying he had material in his head. He
(11:51):
was obviously going through a mental health crisis. Obviously going
through a mental health crisis. And what did the officer due.
They could have gone to a mental health professional and
got an involuntary commitment. What did the officer do? Handcuffed
and let's take him to a magistrate. Let's book him
(12:14):
on a criminal charge, a misuse of a nine to
one to one system. It is not a violent offense.
And that magistrate went to the suggested bail guidelines and
because of that charge gave a written promise to appear,
which is common and in all of your districts, or
(12:35):
most of them, you have suggested bail guidelines.
Speaker 1 (12:39):
The representative out of Durham County making some bizarre allegations
in this case putting the responsibility for this at the
hands of law enforcement who had previously arrested to Carlos
Brown Junior in January after he made multiple false reports
and false calls to nine to one one in Charlotte.
That is a crime, illegal use or misus of the
(13:01):
nine to one to one system. Blaming law enforcement for
not getting an involuntary commitment. See that is her rationale
as to why the situation unfolded the way that it did.
That received some immediate blowback from Republicans represented Brendan Jones,
who is out of Columbus County, was not taking any
of the commentary there from his Democrat colleagues and lit
(13:23):
them up pretty heavily.
Speaker 4 (13:25):
We just heard some buzzwords kindness, mercy. Gosh, you're not
showing that well he damn sure. It didn't show it
to her, And now did he? Where was his kindness?
Where was his mercy? Ending a life for no reason?
Ridiculous comments. We're talking about Christian values. Yeah, I've got
(13:48):
Christian values. We've got to have that mercy. And it
hurts me to forgive him. I don't want to, but
I got to. But it is not right, the wrong.
We heard some legalese facts. Here's a fact. She's dead,
(14:09):
she's not coming back, and this monster did kill her.
Ridiculous to think any otherwise. This is not a Republican matter.
This is not a Democrat matter. This is not a
racial matter. This is right.
Speaker 5 (14:23):
This is wrong.
Speaker 4 (14:24):
He was wrong. This is a step to righte what
we can do in this state. We owe it to
this child. We owe it to the people in this
state to do the right thing, to protect one of
our own who came here, who trusted us that she
would have the protection to have a vibrant, beautiful future.
Speaker 1 (14:46):
That's Representative Brendan Jones out of Columbus County, pushing back
against some of the commentary from Democrats in the General
Assembly on Wednesday, talking about having compassion and trying to
work through these situations. Speaker Destin Hall said, quote, for
too long, activist judges and magistrates have turned to dangerous
criminals loose, endangering the lives and spreading chaos in our communities.
(15:10):
That ends now. Irena Zaruska's murder is a tragic reminder
of what's at stake. That's why we're delivering some of
the strongest tough on crime reforms in North Carolina history.
The debate for this legislation went on for multiple hours
in Raleigh on Wednesday before the final vote was taken.
Speaker 6 (15:31):
Quill a lot of machine and record the vote eighty
two having voting the affirmative end thirty in the negative.
The emotion to concur to sync me to substitute number
two to House Built three O seven having passed, re
ordered sent to the governor via special messenger.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
That was the final vote, eighty two to thirty. A
cub handful of Democrats crossing the aisle voting in favor
of this legislation with their Republican counterparts. In terms of
how the process will play out from here, it did
pass and go through the North Carolina Senate on Tuesday
on Tuesday Monday, rather making its way through the North
(16:06):
Carolina House on Tuesday, and now it is being sent
to Democrat Governor Josh Stein's desk for a signature or veto.
The math could very well could come down to the
math in terms of another veto override in the Senate.
Republicans do hold that veto proof super majority. They are
one vote shy in the House. However, multiple Democrats crossing
(16:28):
the aisle voting in favor of this legislation to me,
would indicate at this point that even if the Governor
Stein does veto House Bill three oh seven, Arena's Law,
that lawmakers would have enough votes in the House to
override his veto and put this law into place. So
that is something that we are going to be tracking
in the coming of days and weeks, as the governor
(16:49):
has twelve days to determine whether he is going to
sign or veto this legislation. We'll keep you up to
date with the details over on our website Carolina Journal
dot com. It's five thirty five, good Wednesday morning to you.
Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour Newstack eleven
(17:09):
ten ninety nine to three WBT as we keep our
attention this morning on the North Carolina General Assembly. A
busy couple of days in Raleigh, as lawmakers in the
Senate were in session on Monday, the North Carolina House
in session on Tuesday, discussing a variety of matters. We
talked about Arena's Law a little bit earlier in the
show this morning. There was another piece of legislation that
(17:31):
was brought up as well, Senate Bill thirteen, the Political
Terrorism Prevention Act. Represented Brenda Jones out of Columbus County
described the importance of this legislation and why it should
go forward.
Speaker 4 (17:43):
We've reached a point in this country where people don't
just lose their jobs over politics, they lose their lives.
It's not an exaggeration, it's not rhetoric, it's reality, and
this bill is our response. The Political Terrorism Prevention Act
isn't a suggestion, it's not a symbolic gesture. It's a warning,
(18:05):
a line drawn in concrete, that politically motivated violence will
not be tolerated in North Carolina period. We're not talking
about spirit of debate, we're not talking about protest. We're
talking about violence, real, deliberate, targeted violence, slick at the facts.
Steve Scalise was shot for being a Republican. Justice calvanaw
(18:28):
nearly assassinated President Trump, shot on stage in his head.
Governor Shapiro's residence was firebombed, Minnesota Legislator Melissa Hortman gunned down.
And now Charlie Kirk, a young man who made it
his life's work to encourage political engagement, free speech, and
(18:50):
using his voice for spreading him the gospel. It's not chaos.
This is not coincidence. It's a pattern. It's been ignored
for far too long. This bill finally meets that pattern
with consequences. It says, if you attack someone for their politics,
that is political terrorism. It is now an aggravated factor
(19:10):
in the sentencing. It's death penalty, egible eligible in the
fact that results in murder. There's no parole, no soft landing,
no early release for those who kill the silent speech.
You commit political violence in this state, you will not
walk free again. Let me be clear, this is our
(19:31):
turning point. This is where we decide if we're going
to defend the right to speak or surrender it to fear.
This is where we choose whether the courtroom protects democracy,
or rather the streets get to decide who is allowed
to talk. Now, if you vote no, you're telling the
radicals out there that violence works. You're telling the next
(19:52):
assassin that the risk is worth it. You're telling the
next grieving family that their son or daughter's life didn't
justify a stronger sentence. Not us, not this chamber, not
this state. We will not let what happened to Charlie
Kirk or Steve Seal's Melissa Hartman President Trump to become
(20:14):
the new normal. We still believe in free speak, we
still believe in powerful debate, and we still believe that
if you try to kill someone for those beliefs, you
deserve the full weight of justice, nothing less.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
That's Representative Brendan Jones out of Columbus County describing some
of the details into this legislation, Senate Bill thirteen, the
Political Terrorism Prevention Act. We got some really keen insight
during the House session on Tuesday as Representative Wyatt Gable
spoke on the legislation. Gable is only twenty two years old.
He is the youngest member in the North Carolina General
(20:52):
Assembly and was the president of the East Carolina Chapter
ECU Chapter of Turning Point USA. He spoke to his
colleagues yesterday about the impact that Turning Point in Charlie
Kirk had for him, and while he was gaining his
political identity and going through the process of getting politically involved.
Speaker 5 (21:12):
Arise not only as a representative, but the youngest member
of this General Assembly and as someone who was seeing
firsthand how political disagreements can turn into political violence. For me,
this issue is personal. Like so many young Conservatives, I
was inspired today and in the years pass to get
involved in public service because of Charlie Kirk. Because of Charlie,
I've met many of my great and best friends, two
(21:34):
of my college roommates, and I feel I sit here
with you. Hopefully some of y'all like me. If not,
that's okay. But I sit here. I feel because of
Charlie and what he created. Here created an organization that
I was able to be a part of. I was
able to learn, I was able to grow, I was
able to network, and I feel it is why I'm
here today. Charlie's assassination was not just an attack on
(21:57):
a man. It was an attack on free speech that
every member of this General Assembly holds deer. This is
why This bill matters. This legislation makes it absolutely clear
if you commit a crime to silent someone's political beliefs,
North Carolina will hold you accountable. If you commit a
felony motivated by political terrorism, your sentence will be raised
(22:18):
one full class higher. If you commit a crime based
on politics, there will be no parole, no early release,
no sentence reduction. Simply you will serve every single day
of your punishment. This should not be a left or
right issue, not a Democrat or Republican issue. It should
be about protecting the First Amendment. It's about protecting North
Carolinians from living in fear of political violence. Colleagues, my
(22:41):
generation is watching. They're asking if we will stand up
and say enough is enough.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
That's representative why a Gable his home district Onslow County Again,
as he noted, the youngest member of the North Carolina
General Assembly at just twenty two years old, that legislation
did not spark that much on the House floor, and
it did pass in an overwhelming majority, one hundred and
five individuals voting in favor of the legislation, six Democrats
(23:10):
voting know the rest of the Democrat caucus in the
North Carolina House voting in favor of Senate Bill thirteen,
the Political Terrorism Prevention Act. That legislation has now passed
both the House and the Senate and will now make
its way to Governor Josh Stein's desk, where it seems
pretty likely that he will sign this legislation into law
(23:31):
due to its strong bipartisan support in both chambers. Some
additional details on this legislation, it's a pretty interesting one. Procedurally,
the bill would require that indictments alleging political motivation would
come forth as a special sentencing factor, and such motivations
must be proven through direct or circumstantial evidence, including statements, manifestos, affiliations,
(23:55):
or targeting patterns. A new structured sentencing aggravated actor would
be explicitly added for politically motivated violence. Political motivation would
be required in the notice of intent to seek the
death penalty and could be considered at sentencing even if
the defendant enters a guilty plea. One of the other
(24:16):
interesting things to note from this legislation, district attorneys of
where this would take place across North Carolina would have
to alert the AG's office in politically motivated cases, and
the Attorney General could appoint a special prosecutor if asked
by their local DA. Victims and relatives could also deliver
impact statements at any stage in the case. So that
(24:39):
legislation has now officially moved forward. As I noted, it
is now on the Governor's desk where he will likely sign.
Note he has not made any public comments. But with
its strong support unanimous in the Senate almost unanimous, just
six Democrats voting against it in the House, you'd find
the governor probably pretty hard pressed to veto such a raw,
(25:00):
bipartisan piece of legislation coming out of the North Carolina
General Assembly. A variety of other issues also dealt with
in a Raleigh of both Monday and Tuesday by the
North Carolina House and Senate, as those lawmakers have made
their way back to Raleigh this week to discuss a
variety of matters. Obviously Arena's Law. On many folks minds,
(25:21):
that's House built three oh seven. One of the other
things that was agreed upon by both chambers is actually
their adjournment resolution. We covered that earlier this year, where
lawmakers were planning on just being back a couple of
times before the end of the year. And while that
is still the plan. They now have lengthier sessions throughout
the remainder of the year. With the adjournment resolution that
(25:42):
did pass both chambers, lawmakers will be back in Raleigh
next if they so choose, and if votes are called
October the twentieth through the twenty third, November seventeenth through
the twentieth, and December fifteenth through the eighteenth. That was
something also that both chambers that dealt with earlier in
the week in Raleigh. We'll keep our eye on if
(26:02):
anything is scheduled for that late October session. Potentially some
veto overrides if the governor chooses to veto something like
Arena's Law and some other legislation. There are still multiple
veto overrides that are outstanding this morning on issues like
concealed Carrie Dei. Those are currently bogged down in the
North Carolina House. We wait for a more guidance from
(26:24):
House leadership as to how that will be tackled, if
it will be tackled before the end of the legislative
session coming up later this year. The sixth annual WBT
Little Heroes Blood Drive continues this week Tomorrow, Thursday, September
the twenty fifth, WBT and the One Blood, Big Red
(26:46):
Bus will be at the Doghouse in Uptown Charlotte from
ten am to three pm. Will be broadcasting live and
are encouraging you to make a life saving blood donation.
The sixth annual WBT Little Hero's Blood Drive continues to Tomorrow, Thursday,
September the twenty fifth, at the Doghouse in Uptown Charlotte.
Visit WBT dot com this morning for location details and
(27:08):
to register your appointment. It's now five point fifty three.
Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour News Talk
eleven ten ninety nine to three WBT recapping a busy
day in Raleigh. Yesterday. In the General Assembly in an
eighty two to thirty vote, the North Carolina House past
House Built three oh seven, also known as IRENA's Law,
(27:28):
which was introduced and passed in response to the horrific
murder of twenty three year old Irena Zaruska on the
Charlotte light rail back on August the twenty second. The
House passed the bill just one day after it quickly
passed through the Senate and passed on the Senate floor
after lengthy debate in both chambers, with some bipartisan support
(27:50):
in the House. That legislation now makes its way to
Governor Josh Stein's desk. We will continue to track its
progress over on our website, Carolina Journal dot com right
here on the Carolina Journal News Hour. In some other
news this morning, a new national poll commissioned by the
American Federation for Children finds broad public support for school
(28:11):
choice and for a recently enacted federal tax scholarship, with
majorities of folks across the country saying that they would
back pro school choice candidates in state legislative races. The
three D Strategic Research survey of more than one thousand
registered voters was in the field in early September and
(28:32):
found that seventy three percent of respondents say that school
choice should be open to all families. Fifty five percent
said it should be available regardless of income or geography.
In a head to head choice for a state legislative
race presented in the poll, fifty seven percent of voters
said that they would vote for a candidate who supports
(28:54):
school choice, versus twenty percent who said they would support
a candidate who opposed this is it. Twenty two percent
said that it wasn't that big of an issue, and
they were undecided support cuts. Across party lines, the poll
found no surprise, seventy percent of Republicans, fifty one percent
of Independence, and forty seven percent of Democrats preferred tools
(29:17):
pro school choice candidates in head to head races and
questions as it related to opportunity scholarship programs, for example,
that's what we've got here in North Carolina. The survey
also tested reaction to a recent federal scholarship tax credit,
which was included in the earlier past this year One
(29:37):
Big Beautiful Bill Act that happened back in July. That legislation,
which is now law, provides tax credits for donations to
nonprofits that award scholarships for private schools, private tutoring, or
other k through twelve options. That now is an available
opportunity for states to opt into, and that's how that
(29:59):
process will play out. Initial support for the policy was
fifty seven fifty eight percent rather overall and sixty six
percent among parents, but rose to sixty four percent after
respondents heard more details. Nearly two thirds favored their state
opting into the federal program, while only eighteen percent opposed
(30:21):
their state's participation in the tax credit. Support for states
opting in was shown across red, blue, and purple states,
sixty two percent in Republican controlled states, sixty three percent
in Democrat controlled states, and sixty seven percent in split states,
which North Carolina would very much fall into. This survey
(30:43):
again researched and conducted by the American Federation for Children.
The CEO of that organization said, quote, every state will
soon have school choice, and these results show that can't
happen soon enough. Parents are parents are interested in moving
of their children two different levels of education and must respond.
(31:05):
The schools must respond or face political consequences. As the
latest scores from the National report Card prove, our nation's
education system is an undeclared state of emergency and in
despite and it is in desperate need of meaningful competition.
You can read some more details on that study this
morning by visiting our website to Carolina Journal dot com.
(31:28):
That's gonna do it for a Wednesday edition. WBT News
is next, followed by Good Morning BT. We're back with
you tomorrow morning five to six right here on News
Talk eleven ten and ninety nine to three. WBT
It's five oh five and welcome into a Wednesday edition
of The Carolina Journal News Hour, Newstock eleven, ten ninety
nine three WBT. I'm Nick Craig, A good morning to you.
The murder of Irena Zaruska, back a little over one
month ago, has continued to be a major political topic
across the state of North Carolina and the North Carolina House.
(00:30):
The General Assembly, back in session this week dealt with
House Built three seven, that is IRENA's Law. The description
of that legislation and some of the open to that
was given by Representative Tricia Cotham, previously a Democrat, now
a Republican, which serves portions of Mecklenburg County.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
She got on our light rail in Charlotte after long
days of work, and she was tragically murdered by a
deranged monster. I'm sure she was looking forward to going
(01:11):
home just to get out to go to work the
next day, but she never made it. This sweet and
beautiful young woman was full of potential and a monster
who already had fourteen previous convictions, including and not limited
(01:38):
to armed rawbery, felony, larceny, and the list goes on.
A diagnosed schizophrenic. He was released by a magistrate without
a secured bond, and the magistrate ignored all the very
obvious red flag, including his erotic behavior just recently before
(02:06):
this event that the police brought forward. He joined the
city streets of Charlotte with nothing but a piece of
paper where he promised on his honor, which he had
none to return about to court.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
That's Representative Tricia Cotham describing the detailing rather the situation
that led up to the murder of the twenty three
year old Ukrainian refugee back on August the twenty second
that happened on the Charlotte light rail. The person in
discussion the suspect who is in custody and has been
in custody since the night of the alleged killing, De
(02:47):
Carlos Brown Junior, as the representative from Mecklenburg County, described
a lengthy political record, and she didn't mince many words.
She said, there's just no excuse as to why he
was even out.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
He should have. I've never been allowed out of the jail.
The catch and release practices for violent offenders will end
today with your support. This heineous act was preventable and
is a direct result of judicial officials being too soft
(03:21):
on crime and allowing too many criminals to have a
revolving door that come into our neighborhoods and into our communities.
These violent offenders are wreaking havoc, not just in Charlotte,
but all over our North Carolina and in everyone's district.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
Representative Cotham really hitting in on a major discussion nationally
as well as it relates to crime in big Democrat
cities across the United States, Charlotte Mecklenburg County being one
of those. After providing some contacts and some details on
the case, the representative from Mecklenburg County described some of
the pieces of this legislation House built three oh seven,
(04:10):
which is an aptly named Arena's Law.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
We must keep our criminals who commit these dangerous crimes
behind bars and off our streets. We must ensure that
judges consider assault offenses during pre trial release process. We
must ensure, and this will be a new addition, that
(04:35):
any crime, any and all crimes that include that you
must be on a registry, any sex offense, statutory rape
of a child, rape wooded too, that you will now
this will be a part of the pre trial release.
These eighteen crimes include, and are not limited to, first
(04:57):
and second degree kidnapping, human traffic, first degree, burglary first
degree are scene shooting up a house or dwelling or
your business, assault with a deadly weapon, robbery with fire arms, trafficking,
human trafficking, fitt and all death by distribution of a
(05:19):
controlled substance, breaking and entering with a terrorized to injure
or caused harm. So now all of those will be
included in the pre trial release. We must eliminate the
condition of a release of a defendant on the written
promise to appear. It is astounding to me that a
(05:42):
man with a monster with fourteen previous convictions, who has
known mental health was homeless. His get out a free
car was literally a written piece of paper where he
said I'll be back. That's wrong. That ends today. If
you support this bill, no more gentle reminders to come
(06:08):
back to court. Defendants with three or more offenses of
our Class one misdemeanors within the last ten years, they
will now have to have a secured bond or house arrest.
We must hold our judges accountable by requiring them to
(06:30):
write a written statement of facts that will go into
the record of the case. Why did you release this person?
What was your thinking. That's accountability, that's transparency. We deserve
to know that victims' families deserve. We also added in
(06:52):
here if a murder occurred on public transportation, the district
attorney may use that as an aggravating factor in a
murder case. We will create additional accountability for magistrates by
allowing the Chief Justice to initiate suspension of a magistrate.
(07:18):
We will direct the Administrative Office of the Courts to
create rules of conduct for magistrates that address conflicts of interest.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
That's Representative Tricia Cotham. She is a Republican out of
Mecklenburg County, where the Heinous Act took place back on
August the twenty second, describing some of the details of
House Built three oh seven Arena's law. It is a wide,
sweeping crime bill and eliminates cashless bail for a vast
majority of offenses across the state of North Carolina, of
(07:55):
which she recapped, restricts judicial restricts judicial discretion in granting
pre trial releases for criminals, and creates a new category
of violent offenses of those which, if they are released
pre trial would require GPS monitoring or some sort of tracking,
including house arrests or a secured bond for those individuals.
(08:18):
The legislation also mandates mental health evaluations in specific cases,
titans deadlines on the death penalty appeal, and adds committing
a capital felony on public transportation to the list of
aggregating factors that can make a defendant eligible for the
death penalty. As you just heard there from Representative Cotham,
(08:39):
Republican leaders say these changes are designed to ensure that
violent and repeat offenders remain off the streets in North Carolina,
while holding magistrates and other judicial officials more accountable for
the decisions they make. Predominantly when we are discussing and
having this discussion about somebody like de Carlos Brown June,
(09:00):
who was a fourteen time repeat criminal and had been
unfortunately a kind of a revolving door within the judicial system.
That obviously not everybody in Raleigh in favor of this
legislation going through, at least as proposed as written. We'll
get into some some comments from other members across the
(09:21):
various political aisles in Raleigh coming up here in just
a couple of minutes. It's five, twenty one. Welcome back
to the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Talk eleven ten
ninety nine to three WBT, as we continue our coverage
this morning of a busy Wednesday in the North Carolina
(09:42):
General Assembly, as the North Carolina House did gavel in
yesterday afternoon to discuss a variety of issues. The biggest
one and the one that is even getting national attention
and coverage this morning, House Bill three oh seven. This
is known as IRENA's Law. It is in response direct
response to the August twenty second murder of Irena Zaruska,
(10:03):
a twenty three year old Ukrainian immigrant who was murdered
on the Charlotte light Rail by the Carlos Brown Junior.
That individual is in custody, has been in custody since
the acts on the Charlotte light Rail and really one
of the topics of conversation of around this is to
Carlos Brown Junior's lengthy criminal rap sheet which includes several
(10:24):
fourteen prior convictions including some very serious things armed robbery, felony, larceny,
breaking and entering. The list goes on for the thirty
four year old alleged a killer into this case. And
while we heard the open from a Representative Trisha Cotham,
and many Republicans in the General Assembly supporting this. Not
all members of the General Assembly were, including Democrat Representative
(10:48):
Marcia Moray out of Durham County, who seemingly blamed local
law enforcement in Charlotte for allowing this situation to take place. Anyway,
we were all appalled.
Speaker 3 (11:02):
In shock, and I would say this crime probably could
not have been prevented. There was an officer twenty feet away.
Was he able to jump into the car and stop it? No,
many of us have seen the horrible video. It was
about three seconds. And yet we talk about the person
(11:27):
alleged in this crime, how he got out on a
promise to appear, even though that was eight months before
this happened in Charlotte, eight months And why was he
brought before a magistrate in January because he was at
a hospital saying he had material in his head. He
(11:51):
was obviously going through a mental health crisis. Obviously going
through a mental health crisis. And what did the officer due.
They could have gone to a mental health professional and
got an involuntary commitment. What did the officer do? Handcuffed
and let's take him to a magistrate. Let's book him
(12:14):
on a criminal charge, a misuse of a nine to
one to one system. It is not a violent offense.
And that magistrate went to the suggested bail guidelines and
because of that charge gave a written promise to appear,
which is common and in all of your districts, or
(12:35):
most of them, you have suggested bail guidelines.
Speaker 1 (12:39):
The representative out of Durham County making some bizarre allegations
in this case putting the responsibility for this at the
hands of law enforcement who had previously arrested to Carlos
Brown Junior in January after he made multiple false reports
and false calls to nine to one one in Charlotte.
That is a crime, illegal use or misus of the
(13:01):
nine to one to one system. Blaming law enforcement for
not getting an involuntary commitment. See that is her rationale
as to why the situation unfolded the way that it did.
That received some immediate blowback from Republicans represented Brendan Jones,
who is out of Columbus County, was not taking any
of the commentary there from his Democrat colleagues and lit
(13:23):
them up pretty heavily.
Speaker 4 (13:25):
We just heard some buzzwords kindness, mercy. Gosh, you're not
showing that well he damn sure. It didn't show it
to her, And now did he? Where was his kindness?
Where was his mercy? Ending a life for no reason?
Ridiculous comments. We're talking about Christian values. Yeah, I've got
(13:48):
Christian values. We've got to have that mercy. And it
hurts me to forgive him. I don't want to, but
I got to. But it is not right, the wrong.
We heard some legalese facts. Here's a fact. She's dead,
(14:09):
she's not coming back, and this monster did kill her.
Ridiculous to think any otherwise. This is not a Republican matter.
This is not a Democrat matter. This is not a
racial matter. This is right.
Speaker 5 (14:23):
This is wrong.
Speaker 4 (14:24):
He was wrong. This is a step to righte what
we can do in this state. We owe it to
this child. We owe it to the people in this
state to do the right thing, to protect one of
our own who came here, who trusted us that she
would have the protection to have a vibrant, beautiful future.
Speaker 1 (14:46):
That's Representative Brendan Jones out of Columbus County, pushing back
against some of the commentary from Democrats in the General
Assembly on Wednesday, talking about having compassion and trying to
work through these situations. Speaker Destin Hall said, quote, for
too long, activist judges and magistrates have turned to dangerous
criminals loose, endangering the lives and spreading chaos in our communities.
(15:10):
That ends now. Irena Zaruska's murder is a tragic reminder
of what's at stake. That's why we're delivering some of
the strongest tough on crime reforms in North Carolina history.
The debate for this legislation went on for multiple hours
in Raleigh on Wednesday before the final vote was taken.
Speaker 6 (15:31):
Quill a lot of machine and record the vote eighty
two having voting the affirmative end thirty in the negative.
The emotion to concur to sync me to substitute number
two to House Built three O seven having passed, re
ordered sent to the governor via special messenger.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
That was the final vote, eighty two to thirty. A
cub handful of Democrats crossing the aisle voting in favor
of this legislation with their Republican counterparts. In terms of
how the process will play out from here, it did
pass and go through the North Carolina Senate on Tuesday
on Tuesday Monday, rather making its way through the North
(16:06):
Carolina House on Tuesday, and now it is being sent
to Democrat Governor Josh Stein's desk for a signature or veto.
The math could very well could come down to the
math in terms of another veto override in the Senate.
Republicans do hold that veto proof super majority. They are
one vote shy in the House. However, multiple Democrats crossing
(16:28):
the aisle voting in favor of this legislation to me,
would indicate at this point that even if the Governor
Stein does veto House Bill three oh seven, Arena's Law,
that lawmakers would have enough votes in the House to
override his veto and put this law into place. So
that is something that we are going to be tracking
in the coming of days and weeks, as the governor
(16:49):
has twelve days to determine whether he is going to
sign or veto this legislation. We'll keep you up to
date with the details over on our website Carolina Journal
dot com. It's five thirty five, good Wednesday morning to you.
Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour Newstack eleven
(17:09):
ten ninety nine to three WBT as we keep our
attention this morning on the North Carolina General Assembly. A
busy couple of days in Raleigh, as lawmakers in the
Senate were in session on Monday, the North Carolina House
in session on Tuesday, discussing a variety of matters. We
talked about Arena's Law a little bit earlier in the
show this morning. There was another piece of legislation that
(17:31):
was brought up as well, Senate Bill thirteen, the Political
Terrorism Prevention Act. Represented Brenda Jones out of Columbus County
described the importance of this legislation and why it should
go forward.
Speaker 4 (17:43):
We've reached a point in this country where people don't
just lose their jobs over politics, they lose their lives.
It's not an exaggeration, it's not rhetoric, it's reality, and
this bill is our response. The Political Terrorism Prevention Act
isn't a suggestion, it's not a symbolic gesture. It's a warning,
(18:05):
a line drawn in concrete, that politically motivated violence will
not be tolerated in North Carolina period. We're not talking
about spirit of debate, we're not talking about protest. We're
talking about violence, real, deliberate, targeted violence, slick at the facts.
Steve Scalise was shot for being a Republican. Justice calvanaw
(18:28):
nearly assassinated President Trump, shot on stage in his head.
Governor Shapiro's residence was firebombed, Minnesota Legislator Melissa Hortman gunned down.
And now Charlie Kirk, a young man who made it
his life's work to encourage political engagement, free speech, and
(18:50):
using his voice for spreading him the gospel. It's not chaos.
This is not coincidence. It's a pattern. It's been ignored
for far too long. This bill finally meets that pattern
with consequences. It says, if you attack someone for their politics,
that is political terrorism. It is now an aggravated factor
(19:10):
in the sentencing. It's death penalty, egible eligible in the
fact that results in murder. There's no parole, no soft landing,
no early release for those who kill the silent speech.
You commit political violence in this state, you will not
walk free again. Let me be clear, this is our
(19:31):
turning point. This is where we decide if we're going
to defend the right to speak or surrender it to fear.
This is where we choose whether the courtroom protects democracy,
or rather the streets get to decide who is allowed
to talk. Now, if you vote no, you're telling the
radicals out there that violence works. You're telling the next
(19:52):
assassin that the risk is worth it. You're telling the
next grieving family that their son or daughter's life didn't
justify a stronger sentence. Not us, not this chamber, not
this state. We will not let what happened to Charlie
Kirk or Steve Seal's Melissa Hartman President Trump to become
(20:14):
the new normal. We still believe in free speak, we
still believe in powerful debate, and we still believe that
if you try to kill someone for those beliefs, you
deserve the full weight of justice, nothing less.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
That's Representative Brendan Jones out of Columbus County describing some
of the details into this legislation, Senate Bill thirteen, the
Political Terrorism Prevention Act. We got some really keen insight
during the House session on Tuesday as Representative Wyatt Gable
spoke on the legislation. Gable is only twenty two years old.
He is the youngest member in the North Carolina General
(20:52):
Assembly and was the president of the East Carolina Chapter
ECU Chapter of Turning Point USA. He spoke to his
colleagues yesterday about the impact that Turning Point in Charlie
Kirk had for him, and while he was gaining his
political identity and going through the process of getting politically involved.
Speaker 5 (21:12):
Arise not only as a representative, but the youngest member
of this General Assembly and as someone who was seeing
firsthand how political disagreements can turn into political violence. For me,
this issue is personal. Like so many young Conservatives, I
was inspired today and in the years pass to get
involved in public service because of Charlie Kirk. Because of Charlie,
I've met many of my great and best friends, two
(21:34):
of my college roommates, and I feel I sit here
with you. Hopefully some of y'all like me. If not,
that's okay. But I sit here. I feel because of
Charlie and what he created. Here created an organization that
I was able to be a part of. I was
able to learn, I was able to grow, I was
able to network, and I feel it is why I'm
here today. Charlie's assassination was not just an attack on
(21:57):
a man. It was an attack on free speech that
every member of this General Assembly holds deer. This is
why This bill matters. This legislation makes it absolutely clear
if you commit a crime to silent someone's political beliefs,
North Carolina will hold you accountable. If you commit a
felony motivated by political terrorism, your sentence will be raised
(22:18):
one full class higher. If you commit a crime based
on politics, there will be no parole, no early release,
no sentence reduction. Simply you will serve every single day
of your punishment. This should not be a left or
right issue, not a Democrat or Republican issue. It should
be about protecting the First Amendment. It's about protecting North
Carolinians from living in fear of political violence. Colleagues, my
(22:41):
generation is watching. They're asking if we will stand up
and say enough is enough.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
That's representative why a Gable his home district Onslow County Again,
as he noted, the youngest member of the North Carolina
General Assembly at just twenty two years old, that legislation
did not spark that much on the House floor, and
it did pass in an overwhelming majority, one hundred and
five individuals voting in favor of the legislation, six Democrats
(23:10):
voting know the rest of the Democrat caucus in the
North Carolina House voting in favor of Senate Bill thirteen,
the Political Terrorism Prevention Act. That legislation has now passed
both the House and the Senate and will now make
its way to Governor Josh Stein's desk, where it seems
pretty likely that he will sign this legislation into law
(23:31):
due to its strong bipartisan support in both chambers. Some
additional details on this legislation, it's a pretty interesting one. Procedurally,
the bill would require that indictments alleging political motivation would
come forth as a special sentencing factor, and such motivations
must be proven through direct or circumstantial evidence, including statements, manifestos, affiliations,
(23:55):
or targeting patterns. A new structured sentencing aggravated actor would
be explicitly added for politically motivated violence. Political motivation would
be required in the notice of intent to seek the
death penalty and could be considered at sentencing even if
the defendant enters a guilty plea. One of the other
(24:16):
interesting things to note from this legislation, district attorneys of
where this would take place across North Carolina would have
to alert the AG's office in politically motivated cases, and
the Attorney General could appoint a special prosecutor if asked
by their local DA. Victims and relatives could also deliver
impact statements at any stage in the case. So that
(24:39):
legislation has now officially moved forward. As I noted, it
is now on the Governor's desk where he will likely sign.
Note he has not made any public comments. But with
its strong support unanimous in the Senate almost unanimous, just
six Democrats voting against it in the House, you'd find
the governor probably pretty hard pressed to veto such a raw,
(25:00):
bipartisan piece of legislation coming out of the North Carolina
General Assembly. A variety of other issues also dealt with
in a Raleigh of both Monday and Tuesday by the
North Carolina House and Senate, as those lawmakers have made
their way back to Raleigh this week to discuss a
variety of matters. Obviously Arena's Law. On many folks minds,
(25:21):
that's House built three oh seven. One of the other
things that was agreed upon by both chambers is actually
their adjournment resolution. We covered that earlier this year, where
lawmakers were planning on just being back a couple of
times before the end of the year. And while that
is still the plan. They now have lengthier sessions throughout
the remainder of the year. With the adjournment resolution that
(25:42):
did pass both chambers, lawmakers will be back in Raleigh
next if they so choose, and if votes are called
October the twentieth through the twenty third, November seventeenth through
the twentieth, and December fifteenth through the eighteenth. That was
something also that both chambers that dealt with earlier in
the week in Raleigh. We'll keep our eye on if
(26:02):
anything is scheduled for that late October session. Potentially some
veto overrides if the governor chooses to veto something like
Arena's Law and some other legislation. There are still multiple
veto overrides that are outstanding this morning on issues like
concealed Carrie Dei. Those are currently bogged down in the
North Carolina House. We wait for a more guidance from
(26:24):
House leadership as to how that will be tackled, if
it will be tackled before the end of the legislative
session coming up later this year. The sixth annual WBT
Little Heroes Blood Drive continues this week Tomorrow, Thursday, September
the twenty fifth, WBT and the One Blood, Big Red
(26:46):
Bus will be at the Doghouse in Uptown Charlotte from
ten am to three pm. Will be broadcasting live and
are encouraging you to make a life saving blood donation.
The sixth annual WBT Little Hero's Blood Drive continues to Tomorrow, Thursday,
September the twenty fifth, at the Doghouse in Uptown Charlotte.
Visit WBT dot com this morning for location details and
(27:08):
to register your appointment. It's now five point fifty three.
Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour News Talk
eleven ten ninety nine to three WBT recapping a busy
day in Raleigh. Yesterday. In the General Assembly in an
eighty two to thirty vote, the North Carolina House past
House Built three oh seven, also known as IRENA's Law,
(27:28):
which was introduced and passed in response to the horrific
murder of twenty three year old Irena Zaruska on the
Charlotte light rail back on August the twenty second. The
House passed the bill just one day after it quickly
passed through the Senate and passed on the Senate floor
after lengthy debate in both chambers, with some bipartisan support
(27:50):
in the House. That legislation now makes its way to
Governor Josh Stein's desk. We will continue to track its
progress over on our website, Carolina Journal dot com right
here on the Carolina Journal News Hour. In some other
news this morning, a new national poll commissioned by the
American Federation for Children finds broad public support for school
(28:11):
choice and for a recently enacted federal tax scholarship, with
majorities of folks across the country saying that they would
back pro school choice candidates in state legislative races. The
three D Strategic Research survey of more than one thousand
registered voters was in the field in early September and
(28:32):
found that seventy three percent of respondents say that school
choice should be open to all families. Fifty five percent
said it should be available regardless of income or geography.
In a head to head choice for a state legislative
race presented in the poll, fifty seven percent of voters
said that they would vote for a candidate who supports
(28:54):
school choice, versus twenty percent who said they would support
a candidate who opposed this is it. Twenty two percent
said that it wasn't that big of an issue, and
they were undecided support cuts. Across party lines, the poll
found no surprise, seventy percent of Republicans, fifty one percent
of Independence, and forty seven percent of Democrats preferred tools
(29:17):
pro school choice candidates in head to head races and
questions as it related to opportunity scholarship programs, for example,
that's what we've got here in North Carolina. The survey
also tested reaction to a recent federal scholarship tax credit,
which was included in the earlier past this year One
(29:37):
Big Beautiful Bill Act that happened back in July. That legislation,
which is now law, provides tax credits for donations to
nonprofits that award scholarships for private schools, private tutoring, or
other k through twelve options. That now is an available
opportunity for states to opt into, and that's how that
(29:59):
process will play out. Initial support for the policy was
fifty seven fifty eight percent rather overall and sixty six
percent among parents, but rose to sixty four percent after
respondents heard more details. Nearly two thirds favored their state
opting into the federal program, while only eighteen percent opposed
(30:21):
their state's participation in the tax credit. Support for states
opting in was shown across red, blue, and purple states,
sixty two percent in Republican controlled states, sixty three percent
in Democrat controlled states, and sixty seven percent in split states,
which North Carolina would very much fall into. This survey
(30:43):
again researched and conducted by the American Federation for Children.
The CEO of that organization said, quote, every state will
soon have school choice, and these results show that can't
happen soon enough. Parents are parents are interested in moving
of their children two different levels of education and must respond.
(31:05):
The schools must respond or face political consequences. As the
latest scores from the National report Card prove, our nation's
education system is an undeclared state of emergency and in
despite and it is in desperate need of meaningful competition.
You can read some more details on that study this
morning by visiting our website to Carolina Journal dot com.
(31:28):
That's gonna do it for a Wednesday edition. WBT News
is next, followed by Good Morning BT. We're back with
you tomorrow morning five to six right here on News
Talk eleven ten and ninety nine to three. WBT
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