{"id":2588916,"date":"2026-04-09T13:28:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T17:28:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/cant-live-like-this-state-charges-may-be-dismissed-against-iryna-zarutskas-accused-murderer-due-to-nc-law\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T13:30:39","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T17:30:39","slug":"cant-live-like-this-state-charges-may-be-dismissed-against-iryna-zarutskas-accused-murderer-due-to-nc-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/cant-live-like-this-state-charges-may-be-dismissed-against-iryna-zarutskas-accused-murderer-due-to-nc-law\/","title":{"rendered":"Can&#8217;t Live Like This: State Charges May Be Dismissed Against Iryna Zarutska&#8217;s Accused Murderer Due to NC Law"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">36<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcant-live-like-this-state-charges-may-be-dismissed-against-iryna-zarutskas-accused-murderer-due-to-nc-law%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2588916&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Decarlos Brown Jr., 35, was charged with murder after <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/public-execution-for-all-to-see-the-message-trump-tweeted-that-should-terrify-decarlos-brown\/\" title=\"&#039;... Execution for All to See&#039;: The Message Trump Tweeted That Should Terrify Decarlos ...\">allegedly stabbing 23-year-<\/a>old Ukrainian refugee Iryna zarutska on a Charlotte, North Carolina light-rail train in August. A December psychiatric evaluation at Central Regional Hospital in Butner, North Carolina found him not competent to stand trial, and his competency hearing was postponed by 180 days at the defence\u2019s request.If the court accepts the hospital\u2019s findings, the state murder charges could be dismissed, though they could be refiled if Brown regains competency. Brown also faces federal charges of violence against a railroad carrier and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >mass transportation system causing death<\/a>, and he is being held in federal custody in Chicago. The article notes a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/coopers-crime-record-under-scrutiny-after-charlotte-light-rail-killing\/\" title=\"Cooper&#039;s crime record under scrutiny after Charlotte light rail killing\">lengthy criminal history-<\/a>about 14 prior arrests since 2007-and reports that he has schizophrenia. It argues that the mental health and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/georgia-police-department-assigns-implicit-bias-training-saying-criminal-justice-system-was-set-up-by-white-men-to-benefit-white-men\/\" title=\"Georgia Police Department Assigns Implicit Bias Training Saying Criminal Justice System Was \u2018Set Up By White Men to Benefit White Men\u2019\">criminal justice systems<\/a> have failed to prevent such outcomes, criticizing rehabilitative approaches in favor of stronger institutional care to protect the public.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Decarlos Brown Jr may be found incompetent to stand trial, resulting in a dismissal of state murder charges.<\/p>\n<p>Brown, 35, was charged after CCTV footage captured him allegedly stabbing 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska to death on a Charlotte, North Carolina, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/seattle-media-doesnt-mention-that-homeless-man-who-brutally-assaulted-62-year-old-nurse-is-homeless\/\" title=\"Seattle Media Doesn\u2019t Mention That Homeless Man Who Brutally Assaulted 62-Year-Old Nurse Is Homeless\">light rail train<\/a> in August.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/04\/08\/us-news\/iryna-zarutskas-accused-killer-decarlos-brown-jr-found-incompetent-in-charlotte-stabbing-trial\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The New York Post<\/a> reports Brown had an evaluation in December at Central Regional Hospital in Butner, North Carolina, that concluded he was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/suspect-iryna-zarutska-killing-declared-incapable-proceed-murder-trial\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">not competent to stand trial<\/a>. His competency hearing in court was scheduled for April 30, but the defense requested a 180-day delay that was granted.<\/p>\n<p>A judge must now decide whether to accept the hospital&rsquo;s findings.<\/p>\n<p>Under state law, if the judge agrees, his charges will be dismissed, the New York Post reported.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Fortunately for the American public, that isn&rsquo;t the end of the criminal case.<\/p>\n<p>If the judge issues a ruling without prejudice, state charges for murder can be refiled if Brown is later found to have regained competency.<\/p>\n<p>Brown also faces federal charges of violence against a railroad carrier and mass transportation system causing death, which were filed in October. He is currently being held in federal custody in Chicago.<\/p>\n<p>Despite a psychiatric evaluation being ordered in the federal case, one has not been conducted yet.<\/p>\n<p>This is by no means Brown&rsquo;s only instance of lawbreaking as he has a history including 14 prior arrests.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/decarlos-brown-jr-criminal-record-what-we-know-about-suspect-charlotte-stabbing-2126423\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Newsweek<\/a> reported in September he was a known schizophrenic to local authorities.<\/p>\n<p>It&rsquo;s tragic the system allowed Brown to even ride the bus that evening in August.<\/p>\n<p>His long history of arrests and mental health issues should have seen him in an institution or a prison cell. As the New York Post reported, those arrests were for crimes like assault to felony robbery going back to 2007.<\/p>\n<p>Asylums need to be commonplace again. Mental health practice veers towards outpatient care on the basis of granting agency in the name of decency and charity to the sick.<\/p>\n<p>What about decency and charity to the general population? We are forced to live around these people and endure their psychotic tendencies.<\/p>\n<p>There is no reason to live like this. The failures of the justice system are another issue entirely.<\/p>\n<p>Mental health issues notwithstanding, someone with a criminal history spanning decades shouldn&rsquo;t have free rein to terrorize society after repeatedly proving he can&rsquo;t function in it.<\/p>\n<p>This is the danger of rehabilitative justice taking priority over punitive justice.<\/p>\n<p>When restoring the offending party&rsquo;s wellbeing and status among a free society comes first, that society suffers.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Decarlos Brown Jr., 35, may be found incompetent to stand trial, which could lead to the dismissal of his state murder charges. He\u2019s accused of stabbing 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska to death on a Charlotte, North Carolina, light-rail train in August, according to CCTV footage. The New York Post reports a December psychiatric evaluation at Central Regional Hospital in Butner, North Carolina, concluded he is not competent to stand trial. A competency hearing was set for April 30, but the defense requested a 180-day delay, which was granted. The judge must decide whether to accept the hospital\u2019s findings; if he does, the state murder charges would be dismissed, though they could be refiled if Brown later regains competency. Brown also faces federal charges of violence against a railroad carrier and mass transportation system causing death, filed in October, and is in federal custody in Chicago; a federal competency evaluation has not yet occurred<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2588917,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/leavitte-for-april-9-2026.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[58965,33010,62829,37890,77460],"class_list":["post-2588916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-charges-dismissed","tag-criminal-justice","tag-iryna-zarutska","tag-murder-case","tag-north-carolina-law"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/leavitte-for-april-9-2026.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2588916","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2588916"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2588916\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2588920,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2588916\/revisions\/2588920"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2588917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2588916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2588916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2588916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}