Free Republic

North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein on Friday signed “Iryna’s Law,” which increases checks on criminals getting out on bail and prohibits cashless bail for some violent crimes and most repeat offenders following the stabbing death of a Ukrainian refugee on a Charlotte light-rail train in August. Stein, a Democrat, has said he doesn’t like every part of the bill that was passed by the Republican-controlled state Legislature, which also looks to restart executions in North Carolina, but he signed it because it “alerts the judiciary to take a special look at people who may pose unusual risks of violence before...

Don Lemon decided to share some truly gross comments about white men and violence. There's no question people need to dial things back. A great place to start would be with rhetoric. Instead of painting entire groups of people as evil, fascist and a threat to society, we should speak with some common sense. Instead of broad generalizations, we should be specific. Well, that is unless you're Don Lemon. Then you're just going to let it fly. For some unknown reason, Lemon thought it was a good idea to get on camera and straight up lie about race and violent...

Republicans in North Carolina and beyond are making a concerted effort to turn the stabbing death of a Ukrainian woman on a Charlotte commuter train into a political liability for Democratic former Gov. Roy Cooper in his bid to win a key U.S. Senate race that is still more than a year away. GOP candidate Michael Whatley has said Cooper bears "direct responsibility" for the deadly Aug. 22 attack on Iryna Zarutska because of a commission he created in June 2020 to address racial inequity in the criminal justice system. The panel's unveiling occurred weeks following the death of George...

A Democratic Party “rising star” who was enthusiastically backed by former Vice President Kamala Harris lost a special election by nearly three percentage points in a city Harris carried by 10 percentage points in 2024. Spiro Cheriogotis, a Republican, defeated Democratic Party challenger Barbara Drummond after receiving 51.39 percent of the vote to Drummond’s 48.61 percent. While the office was already held by a Republican in outgoing Mayor Sandy Stimpson, the race was projected to be very competitive, with many election analysts projecting a Drummond win due to Stimpson’s incumbency advantage and the city’s lean in the 2024 presidential election,...

North Carolina Senate Republicans approved a measure Monday in honor of Iryana Zarutska, the Ukranian refugee stabbed to death on a Charlotte light rail last month, that would revive the death penalty. House Bill 307 is called Iryana’s Law. Republicans say it makes several changes to remove roadblocks that have prevented the death penalty from being carried out in North Carolina. Under the proposal, instead of letting death penalty appeals sit indefinitely, they must now be heard within two years of filing, and continuances will not be granted unless the judge finds extenuating circumstances. The bill would establish lethal injection...

Houston Texans draw outrage for ‘tone-deaf’ pregame tribute to victims of violence without mentioning Charlie Kirk The Houston Texans held a pregame moment of silence during their Monday Night Football game but did not specifically mention Charlie Kirk. Instead, they honored all victims of violence and natural disasters, sparking debate over whether Kirk deserved a distinct tribute. Other NFL teams took different approaches, with some explicitly honoring Kirk by name. This divided response has fueled discussions about respect, politics, and how tragedies are acknowledged in sports. Approximately 20 minutes before kickoff at NRG Stadium, the public address system announced the...

Three recent events have underscored the catastrophic erosion of the foundational tenets of the United States and the anti-Americanism of the Democrat Party. The first is the brutal murder of a young woman in Charlotte, N.C., Iryna Zarutska. The second, the assassination of Charlie Kirk. The third, sitting Democrat senator Tim Kaine’s declaration reflecting a fundamental belief within the current Democrat Party that the government is the source and, thus, the final arbiter of all human rights.Over the centuries, those that deem the state is paramount and, thus, the source of all rights, believe granting, limiting, or denying these rights...

My liberal friends are completely oblivious about how radicalizing the last week has been for tens of millions of normal Americans. Zero clue. I’m not talking about people who are “online”; I mean regular, everyday Americans. “Normies.” People who scroll through Facebook posts and Instagram reels from the Dutch Bros drive thru line. Political moderates who have water cooler chats about Mahomes touchdowns and Bon Jovi concerts, not Twitter threads or Rachel Maddow monologues. Millions of them. Tens of millions. They’re logging on, they’re engaging, and they’re furious. And I’ll be candid: They blame you guys. They blame the left....

A Fox News presenter suggested during a live segment that people struggling with homelessness and mental health issues should be executed. Brian Kilmeade made the comments on the network's flagship talk show Fox and Friends on Wednesday alongside co-hosts Lawrence Jones and Ainsley Earhardt. The trio had been discussing the murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska who was killed while on a bus when Kilmeade made the now heavily criticized remark. Jones suggested that people not taking up programs to help those battling mental health and homelessness should be locked up, when Kilmeade went nuclear. 'Or involuntary lethal or something,...

Robert Sterling @RobertMSterling (Warning: long rant) My liberal friends are completely oblivious about how radicalizing the last week has been for tens of millions of normal Americans. Zero clue. I’m not talking about people who are “online”; I mean regular, everyday Americans. “Normies.” People who scroll through Facebook posts and Instagram reels from the Dutch Bros drive thru line. Political moderates who have water cooler chats about Mahomes touchdowns and Bon Jovi concerts, not Twitter threads or Rachel Maddow monologues. Millions of them. Tens of millions. They’re logging on, they’re engaging, and they’re furious. And I’ll be candid: They blame...

The murder of Iryna Zarutska on Charlotte’s light rail was not only a savage crime—it was the inevitable result of a national agenda of progressive “justice reform,” funded by outside NGOs and executed by local officials who put “equity” ahead of public safety. Charlotte is just the latest example of how this machine works: money flows in, jails are emptied, and the public is left to pay the price. As ZeroHedge aptly summarized, It seems as if the very pillars the Democratic Party has built itself on, whether social and criminal justice reform, progressive judges, or its dark-money-funded NGO complex,...

Thanks in part to Kirk’s tireless efforts, the left has been steadily losing the war of ideas, and with it their hold on the mass mind. They no longer have the ability to define the boundaries of the Overton window, because every single one of their claims has been shown to be baseless, deceptive, and destructive of both individual lives and society itself. Since the advent of mass media the left has had the ability to delineate the acceptable boundaries of discourse; since the rise of social media, and the advent of the meme war, this power has slipped through...

During a phone call recorded by his sister and shared with the Daily Mail, Decarlos Brown explained what was going through his mind when he launched the fatal attack.The knifeman who allegedly killed Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska has spoken for the first time from jail in a harrowing phone call recorded by his sister. Decarlos Brown, 34, was seen in surveillance footage lunging at Zarutska, 23, from behind as she sat scrolling on her phone on a train through Charlotte on August 22. The disturbing video has sparked widespread grief, anger, and questions about public safety in the Democrat-led city...

Whoopi Goldberg used her platform on The View to plead for a stop to the 'politicization' of the murder of Ukrainian immigrant Iryna Zarutska on a train in Charlotte last month. 'Look, a young woman is dead. Let's take that into consideration,' Goldberg, 69, said of the brutal August 22 stabbing of Zarutska, 23, by career criminal Decarlos Brown Jr., 34. 'And yes, a man who should have been behind bars was loose and out. His mother begged them to take him and put him away.

This list only includes destroyed vehicles and equipment of which photo or videographic evidence is available. Therefore, the amount of equipment destroyed is significantly higher than recorded here. Loitering munitions, drones used as unmanned bait, civilian vehicles and derelict equipment are not included in this list. All possible effort has gone into avoiding duplicate entries and discerning the status of equipment between captured or abandoned. Many of the entries listed as 'abandoned' will likely end up captured or destroyed. Similarly, some of the captured equipment might be destroyed if it can't be recovered. When a vehicle is captured and then...

BREAKING - The official black lives matter account has posted a video stating that black people “have a right to violence” amid mass outrage over the slaying of Iryna Zarutska at the hands of a black male in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Isaiah 46:4 (King James Version) And even to your old age I am he; and even to hoar hairs will I carry you: I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you. Are you women paying attention to which group in America is being raped and murdered in America? It is young white women in massive numbers since the Democrat Communist Party has convinced you that it is virtuous to allow criminals to run free and rape and murder you. You have voted in massive numbers to eliminate the police and jailing of criminals...

Republican lawmakers are pushing to have the North Carolina judge who released the violent criminal accused of fatally stabbing Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska removed from the bench. Ten GOP US House members from North Carolina have signed a letter insisting on formal proceedings to remove Magistrate Judge Teresa Stokes for her “reckless” decision to release Decarlos Brown Jr. on cashless bail despite being aware of his lengthy criminal history and mental health issues, Rep. Tim Moore (R-NC) posted on X Wednesday. The letter, addressed to Chief District Court Judge Roy Wiggins, claimed that Stokes’ ruling to allow Brown Jr. to...

U.S. President Donald Trump called for Decarlos Brown Jr. to receive the death penalty after a quick trial for the killing of Iryna Zarutska. "The ANIMAL who so violently killed the beautiful young lady from Ukraine, who came to America searching for peace and safety, should be given a 'Quick' (there is no doubt!) Trial, and only awarded THE DEATH PENALTY," Trump posted to Truth Social. "There can be no other option!!!" This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.

Gruesome video shows a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee getting stabbed to death on a Charlotte light rail train – a case that has turned into a flashpoint as the Trump administration vows to crack down on crime in large, predominantly Democratic cities. The attack happened shortly before 10 p.m. August 22, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said. A caller said a woman was stabbed in the throat. The victim, Iryna Zarutska, is a refugee who recently fled from war-torn Ukraine, CNN affiliate WBTV reported. Video of the attack shows Zarutska entering a train car and taking a seat directly in front of...