It's 5.05 and welcome in to a Wednesday edition of the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Talk 1110, 99.3 WBT. I'm Nick Craig. Good morning to you. The murder of Irina 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, the General Assembly back in session this week, dealt with House Bill 307.
That is Irina'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. 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 home. Just to get up 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 14 previous convictions including and not limited to armed robbery, 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 flags. including his erotic behavior.
just recently before 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 honour. which he had none to return back to court.
That's Representative Tricia Cotham describing the detailing rather the situation that led up to the murder of the 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee back on August the 22nd. 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, to Carlos Brown Jr., 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. He should have never been allowed out of the jail.
The catch and release practices for violent offenders will end today. With your support. This heinous act was preventable. and is a direct result of judicial officials being too soft 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 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 context and some details on the case, the representative from Mecklenburg County described some of the pieces of this legislation, House Bill 307, which is aptly named ARENA's law. 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 pretrial release process, We must ensure, and this will be a new addition, that any crime, any and all crimes that include that you must be on a registry, any sex offense, statutory rape of a child, rape one, and two, that you will now, this will be a part of the pretrial release. These eighteen crimes include and are not limited to. first and second degree kidnapping, human trafficking, first degree burglary, first degree arson, shooting up a house or dwelling or your business, assault with a deadly weapon, Robbery with firearms. Trafficking Human trafficking.
Fentanyl, death by distribution of a controlled substance. Breaking and entering with the terrorized to injure or cause harm.
So now all of those will be included in the pretrial 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 man with A monster With 14 previous convictions, who has known mental health, who is 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 back to court. Defendants with three or more offenses of our Class I misdemeanors within the last 10 years, they will now have to have. I think it's a very good question. or house arrest.
We must hold our judges accountable. By requiring them to 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 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. We will direct the administrative office of the courts to create rules of conduct.
for magistrates that address Conflicts of interest. That's Representative Tricia Cotham. She is a Republican out of Mecklenburg County, where this heinous act took place back on August the 22nd, describing some of the details of House Bill 307, Arena's Law. It is a wide-sweeping crime bill. It eliminates cashless bail for a vast majority of offenses across the state of North Carolina, of which she recapped, restricts judicial discretion in granting pretrial 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 arrest or a secured bond for those individuals.
The legislation also mandates mental health evaluations in specific cases, tightens 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, 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 DeCarlos Brown Jr., who was a 14-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 comments from other members across the various political aisles in Raleigh coming up here in just a couple of minutes.
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Restrictions. at forehearst.com apply. It's 521. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Talk 1110-993 WBT as we continue our coverage this morning of a busy Wednesday in the North Carolina 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 307.
This is known as Irina's Law. It is in response, direct response to the August 22nd murder of Irina Zaruska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian immigrant who was murdered on the Charlotte light rail by DeCarlos Brown Jr. 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 around this is DeCarlos Brown Jr.'s lengthy criminal rap sheet, which includes several, 14 prior convictions, including some very serious things, armed robbery, felony, larceny, breaking and entering. The list goes on for the 34-year-old alleged killer in this case.
And while we heard the open from Representative Tricia Cotham and many Republicans in the General Assembly supporting this, not all members of the General Assembly were, including Democrat Representative Marsha Maury out of Durham County, who seemingly blamed local law enforcement in Charlotte for allowing this situation to take place anyway. Mm-hmm. We were all appalled. 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 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 was obviously going through a mental health crisis. obviously going through a mental health crisis. And what did the officer do? They could have gone to a mental health professional and got an involuntary commitment. What did the officer do?
handcuffed and lits taken to a magistrate. Let's book him. on a criminal charge of misuse of a 911 system. It is not a violent offence. 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 most of them, you have suggested bail guidelines. 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 DeCarlos Brown Jr. in January after he made multiple false reports and false calls to 911 in Charlotte. That is a crime, illegal use or misuse of the 911 system, blaming law enforcement for not getting an involuntary commitment.
That is her rationale as to why the situation unfolded the way that it did. That received some immediate blowback from Republicans. Representative Brendan Jones, who is out of Columbus County, was not taking any of the commentary there from his Democrat colleagues and lit them up pretty heavily. We just heard some buzzwords. The kindness.
Mercy. Gosh, you're not showing that.
Well, he damn sure didn't show it to her 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 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. 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. This is wrong.
He was wrong. This is a step to right 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. 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. House Speaker Destin Hall said, quote, For too long, activist judges and magistrates have turned dangerous criminals loose, endangering the lives and spreading chaos in our communities. That ends now. Irina 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. Clerk will lock the machine and record the vote, 82 having voted in the affirmative and 30 in the negative. The motion to concur to the Senate Committee substitute number due to House Bill 307 having passed, reorder sent to the governor via special messenger. That was the final vote.
82 to 30. A 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 Monday, rather, making its way through the North Carolina House on Tuesday. And now it is being sent to Democrat Governor Josh Stein's desk for a signature or veto. The math very well could come down to the math in terms of another veto override.
In the Senate, Republicans do hold that veto-proof supermajority. They are one vote shy in the House.
However, multiple Democrats crossing 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 307, Irena'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 you going to be tracking in the coming days and weeks as the governor has 12 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, CarolinaJournal.com. You're listening to Leaf Filter Radio, and the guru of gutter protection himself, Chris Koonahan, is here to take your most pressing Leaf-related questions. Hey, everybody, Chris here.
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Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Talk 1110, 99.3 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 was brought up as well, Senate Bill 13, the Political Terrorism Prevention Act. Representative Brendan Jones out of Columbus County described the importance of this legislation and why it should go forward.
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 a reality. And this bill is our spots.
The Political Terrorism Prevention Act isn't a suggestion, it's not a symbolic gesture. It's a warning. 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. Let's look at the facts.
Steve Kalise was shot for being a Republican. Justice Calvinagh nearly assassinated. President Trump shot on stage in his head. Governor Shapiro's residents 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 using his voice for spreading 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 in the sentencing. It's death penalty 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 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 loud to talk.
Now if you vote no You're telling the radicals out there that violence works. You're telling the next 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 Seeley's. Melissa Hartman, President Trump. They become the new normal. We still believe in free speech. 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. That's Representative Brendan Jones out of Columbus County describing some of the details in this legislation, Senate Bill 13, 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 22 years old.
He is the youngest member in the North Carolina General 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 and Charlie Kirk had for him and while he was gaining his political identity and going through the process of getting politically involved. I rise not only as a representative but the youngest member of this General Assembly, and as someone who has seen 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 years past to get involved in public service because of Charlie Kirk.
Because of Charlie, I've met many of my great and best friends, two of my college roommates, and I feel I sit here with you. Hopefully some of you like me. If not, that's okay. But I sit here, I feel, because of Charlie and what he created. He 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 a man, it was an attack on free speech that every member of this General Assembly holds dear.
This is why this bill matters. This legislation makes it absolutely clear if you commit a crime to silence someone's political beliefs, North Carolina will hold you accountable. If you commit a felony motivated by political terrorism, your sentence will be raised 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 generation is watching. They are asking if we will stand up and say enough is enough.
That's Representative Wyatt Gable, his home district, Onslow County. Again, as he noted, the youngest member of the North Carolina General Assembly at just 22 years old. That legislation did not spark that much debate on the House floor, and it did pass in an overwhelming majority. 105 individuals voting in favor of the legislation, six Democrats voting no, the rest of the Democrat caucus in the North Carolina House voting in favor of Senate Bill 13, 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 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, or targeting patterns. A new structured sentencing aggravated factor 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 interesting things to note from this legislation, district attorneys aware 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 legislation has now officially moved forward. As I noted, it is now on the governor's desk where he will likely sign. He has not, I'll 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 broad, bipartisan piece of legislation coming out of the North Carolina General Assembly. A variety of other issues also dealt with in Raleigh both Monday and Tuesday by the North Carolina House and Senate as those lawmakers made their way back to Raleigh this week to discuss a variety of matters.
Obviously, Arena's Law on many folks' minds. That's House Bill 307. 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 did pass both chambers.
Lawmakers will be back in Raleigh next if they so choose and if votes are called October the 20th through the 23rd, November 17th through the 20th, and December 15th through the 18th. That was something also that both chambers dealt with earlier in the week in Raleigh. We'll keep our eye on if anything is scheduled for that late October session, potentially some VT. 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 carry, DEI.
Those are currently bogged down in the North Carolina House. We await for more guidance from 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. Lowe's knows how to get you ready for holiday hosting with up to 35% off select home decor and get up to 35% off select major appliances. Plus, members get free delivery, haul away, basic installation, parts, and a two-year Lowe's protection plan when you spend $2,500 or more on select LG major appliances. Fallon through 10.1, member offer excludes Massachusetts, Maryland, Wisconsin, New Jersey, and Florida.
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Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, News Talk 1110, 99.3 WBT recapping a busy day in Raleigh yesterday in the General Assembly in an 82-30 vote. The North Carolina House passed House Bill 307, also known as Irena's Law, which was introduced and passed in response to the horrific murder of 23-year-old Irena Zaruska on the Charlotte light rail back on August the 22nd. 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 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, CarolinaJournal.com, and right here on the Carolina Journal NewsHour.
In some other news this morning, a new national poll commissioned by the American Federation for Children finds broad public support for school 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 3D strategic research survey of more than 1,000 registered voters was in the field in early September and found that 73% of respondents say that school choice should be open to all families. 55% 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, 57% of voters said that they would vote for a candidate who supports school choice versus 20% who said they would support a candidate who opposes it. 22% said that it wasn't that big of an issue and they were undecided.
Support cuts across party lines. The poll found, no surprise, 70% of Republicans, 51% of Independents, and 47% of Democrats preferred ProTulska 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 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-12 options.
That now is an available opportunity for states to opt into, and that's how that process will play out. Initial support for the policy was 58% rather overall and 66% among parents, but rose to 64% after respondents heard more details. Nearly two-thirds favored their state opting into the federal program, while only 18% opposed their state's participation in the tax credit. Support for states opting in was shown across red, blue, and purple states, 62% in Republican-controlled states, 63% in Democrat-controlled states, and 67% in split states, which North Carolina would very much fall into. This survey, 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 interested in moving their children to different levels of education and must respond schools must respond or face political consequences. As the latest scores from the National Report Card prove, our nation's education system is in 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, CarolinaJournal.com. That's going to do it for a Wednesday edition. WBT News is next.
Followed by Good Morning BT. We're back with you tomorrow morning, 5 to 6, right here on News Talk 1110 and 99.3, WBT.
