North Carolina's top legislative leaders said Thursday they will push a package of measures aimed at tightening pretrial release rules following the fatal stabbing of a Ukrainian refugee on a Charlotte commuter train that has spurred national attention and calls for tougher crime policy.
Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Destin Hall said the proposal, expected when the Republican-controlled General Assembly reconvenes Sept. 22, would reduce local magistrates' discretion in setting release conditions, increase oversight of those decisions and could include efforts to restart capital punishment in the state.
The proposed changes are a response to the Aug. 22 fatal stabbing of 23-year-old Iryna Zarutska. Authorities arrested 27-year-old Decarlos Brown Jr. soon after the attack. Video released last week showing what appears to be a random assault prompted criticism from President Donald Trump and conservative activists who blamed government and judicial officials for allowing dangerous people back on the streets.
Brown has been charged in state court with first-degree murder. U.S. prosecutors also have lodged federal charges that carry penalties up to life in prison or death. State officials say Brown's record includes more than five years in prison after a guilty plea to robbery with a deadly weapon. In January he was charged with misuse of the 911 system and was released by a Mecklenburg County magistrate on his promise to appear in court, without bond.
Hall and Berger said magistrates should not have the option to grant cashless release for defendants with prior violent felony convictions and that selection and training of magistrates will be examined. "We must deliver justice for Iryna and the countless families across our state that have fallen victim to a justice system that does not support them and does not keep them safe," Berger said at a news conference.
A 2023 state law, backed by Charlotte-area law enforcement, moved authority in some cases from magistrates to judges by requiring judges to set conditions for pretrial release for certain violent offenders. Hall said the law does not go far enough and that Brown should not have been allowed to leave custody in January given his criminal history and mental health concerns.
Berger also signaled interest in blocking gubernatorial powers to create commissions that he said encourage local policies favoring defendants, pointing to a 2020 task force created by then-Gov. Roy Cooper to address racial inequities in the criminal justice system after the death of George Floyd. That task force has been criticized by some Republicans, and former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley, a 2026 U.S. Senate candidate, spoke at the news conference.
Any legislative package would go to Democratic Gov. Josh Stein for his signature. Republicans are one House seat short of a veto-proof majority in the General Assembly. Stein's office said the governor is advocating for more funding to recruit and retain law enforcement officers and to train judges and magistrates on best practices for setting release conditions for defendants with mental illness. Stein's spokesperson, Morgan Hopkins, said the governor is seeking bipartisan solutions.
North Carolina has not carried out an execution since 2006, as legal challenges over lethal injection drugs and other procedural issues have delayed death penalty cases. Berger noted that Brown's state first-degree murder charge is punishable by life or death and said he is exploring ways to restart capital punishment in the state.
The proposals come amid a broader national debate over pretrial release, public safety and criminal justice reforms that began accelerating in the 2010s. Lawmakers in Raleigh signaled they will pursue legislative changes quickly when they return to the Legislative Building, but specifics, including bill language and votes, were not released Thursday. Any changes would face scrutiny from criminal justice advocates, law enforcement groups and the governor's office as lawmakers weigh policy and political considerations ahead of the next legislative session.