By Ashleigh Fields
The Charlotte Post
Charlotte has become the focus of a political shift in which President Donald Trump is dictating local law enforcement policy or threatening to do so.
Trump recently highlighted the city after the Aug. 22 stabbing death of Iryna Zarutska on a Lynx Blue Line train. Police arrested Decarlos Brown Jr., 34, and charged him with murder and a federal charge of committing an act causing death on a mass transportation system. He has pleaded not guilty.
“The blood of this innocent woman can literally be seen dripping from the killer’s knife, and now her blood is on the hands of the Democrats who refuse to put bad people in jail, including Former Disgraced Governor and ‘Wannabe Senator’ Roy Cooper,” Trump wrote in a Sept. 8 social media post.
“North Carolina, and every State, needs LAW AND ORDER, and only Republicans will deliver it!”
While Cooper, the state’s former governor who left office in December, isn’t in an elected capacity to influence a response to Zarutska’s death. But Trump labeled him and other Democrats as insufficient for leadership ahead of next year’s midterm elections. Cooper is running for the open U.S. Senate seat in 2026 with the retirement of incumbent Thom Tillis.
As Democrats face intense scrutiny from the White House and beyond, Charlotte leaders are left to wonder if Trump will dispatch troops here.
Last year, Charlotte was ranked in the top 20 for violent crime per 100,000 residents, according to FBI data, with 7,413 cases reported and 111 murders.
In a city where the mayor, district attorney, police chief and city manager are Black, concerns about a federal crackdown are front of mind after Trump’s promise to introduce new safety principles in cities throughout the nation.
“This will go further,” he said after announcing the Washington takeover in August. “We’re going to take back our capital … and then we’ll look at other cities also,” singling out Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Baltimore, and Oakland – all of which have a Black mayor.
However, the Democratic Mayors Association rejected the need for soldiers in U.S. jurisdictions.
“Let’s be clear: Crime is down in most major cities – including Washington, D.C. – in spite of Donald Trump, not because of him,” the group said in a statement. “While there is still more work to be done, Mayors need a federal partner who works with them, not against them.”
Charlotte’s crime rate has fallen 8% through August, with violent crime down 25%.
Mayor Vi Lyles, who is running for a fifth term, said she wants to see more reductions in crime.
“We are ready and willing to work with state and federal partners to make our community better and safer,” she said. “I have always looked for ways for people to come together to find bipartisan solutions and will continue to do so.
“City leaders have been working to improve safety in our community and on our transit system and we will continue to do so.”
She did not directly speak to Trump’s claims that Democrats are responsible for public safety lapses.
“President Trump has highlighted the light rail killing in Charlotte, Vice President [J.D.] Vance has traveled to Concord to speak about it, and state Republican leaders have criticized Charlotte and passed legislation specifically,” said Eric Heberlig, a professor of political science and public administration at UNC Charlotte. “All of this suggests that the president and other Republicans see substantial political benefits in publicly addressing the public’s concerns about crime in general and this crime.
“We have seen President Trump send in National Guard troops to other cities to provide a greater security presence so that clearly suggests he would be willing to do so here. Similarly, he has not been discouraged from doing so because of objections from state and local officials.”
North Carolina Republicans – who control both chambers of the General Assembly – passed a bill last month originally touted as criminal justice reform that emphasizes capital punishment as a key cornerstone.
The Republican-controlled state Senate on approved House Bill 307, or Iryna’s Law, which includes a measure to revive the death penalty as part of the package by removing barriers that prevented executions. The bill would require review of death penalty appeals within two years.
Any appeal or motion filed more than two years ago must be scheduled for hearing by December 2026, and the hearing must take play by December 2027.
The country’s political discord has gained momentum in violent acts in recent months, with assassination attempts on elected officials, the fatal shooting of conservative adviser Charlie Kirk and National Guard deployment in cities.
Black Democratic-led areas including Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and now Memphis, Tennessee, have seen boots on the ground to reduce criminal activity. While Memphis and Washington both rank top 10 for violent crime, according to FBI data, neither has welcomed militarized law enforcement amid heightened political tensions.
“D.C. is under siege by our own federal government, with armed military patrolling our streets and masked agents scooping up neighbors and taking them away,” Washington City Council member Brianne Nadeau said in a statement following the deployment. “Our residents are afraid, hesitant to go out and to work, angry that our limited autonomy is being eroded. There is nothing welcome about this.”
Memphis Mayor Paul Young said he was informed about Trump’s decision to deploy troops to his city during a Trump interview on “Fox & Friends,” while Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, a Democrat, said she learned soldiers would be deployed after Trump posted an announcement on social media.
Both said the federal presence is unwarranted and unneeded.
“As community leaders, we have an obligation to address these concerns, both the perception of crime and the reality of it,” City Council member Malcolm Graham said after Zarutska’s stabbing. “Simply, there’s no choice but to meet this moment with clarity of purpose, by addressing root causes, admitting our shortcomings where they exist, and listening to community voices and acting swiftly to regain public confidence.
“We must block out the outside noise and focus on the urgent work in front of us. It would be a mistake to focus only on transit safety, though it is important. Instead, we must take a holistic approach that strengthens safety throughout the entire city, in our town, in our corridors of opportunities, in our neighborhoods, parks, schools, and beyond.”
