MECKLENBURG COUNTY – Today, Michael Whatley, law enforcement officials, and elected officials participated in a press conference discussing how soft-on-criminal policies led to the horrific tragedy of Iryna Zarutska’s murder one year ago. Zarutska was brutally murdered by Decarlos Brown Jr. on August 22, 2025. Brown had previously been arrested and released 13 times thanks to Roy Cooper’s soft-on-criminals culture that Cooper pushed throughout his tenure as Attorney General and Governor. Cooper’s criminal coddling eventually put Brown on Cooper’s COVID early release list of 4,200 hardened criminals.
Whatley was joined by NC Senator Brad Overcash, Daniel Redford (President Charlotte FOP), and Barbara Strang (Former Mecklenburg County Magistrate).
“Iryna Zarutska’s blood is on Roy Cooper’s hands. When Roy Cooper chose to allow her killer, Decarlos Brown Jr, to roam the streets, he put the entire city of Charlotte at risk. Unfortunately, today marks one year since Iryna was taken from her family because Cooper chose to place criminals over North Carolinians. As your next Senator, I will work tirelessly to ensure that tragedies like Iryna’s senseless murder never occur again,” said Michael Whatley.