CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The North Carolina House of Representatives passed a sweeping crime bill Tuesday , but a Charlotte-area lawmaker immediately criticized the measure as inadequate to address violent crime following the fatal shooting of a 4-year-old in his district.
House Bill 307, known as Iryna's Law, tightens pretrial release requirements for violent offenders, eliminates cashless bail options, mandates certain health evaluations and modifies death penalty appeal processes. The legislation now heads to Gov. Josh Stein's desk.
Rep. Terry Brown, who represents the Steele Creek neighborhood where 4-year-old Jayce Edwards was shot while sleeping last week , voted for the bill but argued it fails to tackle the root causes of crime.
"I did vote for that package but I was very critical of t