A congressional committee will hold a hearing on crime in Charlotte, North Carolina, Sept. 29, following the Aug. 22 murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on one of the city’s light rail trains.
According to The Charlotte Observer, members of the House Judiciary Committee said Zarutska’s murder was the catalyst that prompted the scheduled field hearing.
“The tragic murder of Iryna Zarutska is the culmination of years of failed liberal policies that put criminals ahead of victims. Police officers did their jobs, but the system let a repeat offender walk free, and Iryna paid the price. That should never happen in America,” Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-N.J., reportedly said. Van Drew chairs the committee’s Oversight Subcommittee.
He added that the purpose of the hearing is to “to expose how blue cities keep putting career criminals back on our streets, making our communities less safe.”
“This was entirely preventable, and we owe it to the people to fix it before another innocent life is lost,” he said.
As Zeale previously reported, 34-year-old Decarlos Brown Jr. has been arrested and charged with Zarutska’s murder. He has a history of mental health issues and criminal charges and previously served five years in prison for an armed robbery conviction.
On social media, President Donald Trump called Brown “a well known career criminal, who had been previously arrested and released on CASHLESS BAIL in January, a total of 14 TIMES.” Trump has also called for the death penalty, according to The Charlotte Observer.
Brown’s next hearing is set for Sept. 19.