Families demand action on violent crime at Charlotte congressional hearing

CHARLOTTE — Emotional testimony filled Charlotte’s federal courthouse Monday as grieving families urged lawmakers to take action on violent crime, repeat offenders and pretrial release.

Lawmakers in Washington D.C. descended on the Queen City for the “Victims of Violent Crime” congressional hearing five weeks after Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska was killed on Charlotte’s light rail.

>>CLICK HERE for complete coverage of the light rail stabbing

Several people testified at the hearing, calling for change.

Watch the hearing below:

Mia Alderman, the grandmother of Mary Collins, spoke.

“She was bludgeoned in the head. She was stabbed more than 130 times. Mary then bled out in a bathtub,” Alderman said.

The violent crime happened in 2020. Police found Collins’ body wrapped in plastic and stuffed in a mattress inside a NoDa apartment.

Alderman has been fighting for justice and accountability ever since.

It has been five years and three of the people charged in the case still have not gone to trial.

“Five years is not justice,” Alderman said. “Five years is torment. How good are we doing for our family? How good are you doing for your kids?”

Stephen Federico also painfully testified.

Police said his 22-year-old daughter, Logan Federico, from Waxhaw, was shot and killed during a home invasion four months ago while visiting friends in Columbia, South Carolina.

“(She was) forced on her knees with her hands over her head, begging for her life,” Stephen Federico said.

Alexander Dickey was charged with the crime, “who was arrested 39 (expletive) times -- 25 felonies -- was on the street,” the father said.

Both grieving families pleaded with lawmakers to change policies to keep repeat offenders behind bars, and not to give bonds of any type to those accused of violent crimes.

It is no secret that the system needs to be fixed, they said.

CMPD Officer Justin Campbell, who was hurt in the ambush on Galway Drive in 2024 and Michael Woody, Asheville bail bondsman, also testified.

Channel 9 also spoke with Republican Congressman Ralph Norman, who represents the South Carolina suburbs of Charlotte.

He supports tightening laws for repeat offenders Norman said suspects, including Decarlos Brown Jr., the man charged with killing Zarutska should’ve never been out of jail.

“How long is it gone take for our judges to wake up and no let this type thing happen,” Norman said. “It’s time to take the handcuffs off the police, and out it back on the criminals, and put them behind bars.”

‘We can’t live like this’

Some new policies have been voted on at the state level and are about to be on the table at the federal level.

From the federal to the local level, lawmakers said to expect change not just in honor of Zarutska, but also in honor of Collins, Logan Federico, and all the victims of violent crime that lawmakers heard about on Monday.

“There is nothing we do except make sure her life has meaning,” said Rep. Jefferson Van Drew, R-New Jersey.

Van Drew acknowledged there was nothing anybody in the room could do to bring Zarutska, Collins, Logan Federico, or any of the victims back.

However, he said field hearings, such as the one in Charlotte on violent crime, are important so lawmakers can try to ensure what happened to them doesn’t happen again

“We can’t live like this,” Van Drew said. “We don’t want to live like this. And here is the catch. There is absolutely no reason for us to live like this.”

On the federal level, Union County Congressman Mark Harris said he’ll introduce legislation taking on cashless bail.

Wilmington Congressman David Rouzer wants to crack down on cities not enforcing fares.

“We’ll be looking at ways to incentivize fare enforcement, that might be dollars, that might be policy positions,” said Rouzer.

On the Democratic side, Charlotte Congresswoman Alma Adams called the hearing political theatre.

Raleigh Congresswoman Deborah Ross said lawmakers should be providing more funding to communities, instead.

“Given the lack of resources the state legislature has provided to the Mecklenburg DA’s office, we’re left hoping that the federal government will help pick up some of the slack,” Ross said.

However, victims’ families told the committee that policy changes need to be made.

“If we had more money, he would have still been released, if we had the same policies,” Van Drew said. “That’s the point. It’s not the money.”

Steve Federico said, “It’s bad decisions.”

Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles and city manager Marcus Jones will hold a press conference Wednesday to go over the changes coming to the Charlotte Area Transit System.

On the state level, “Iryna’s Law” is still sitting on Gov. Josh Stein’s desk. He has not said if he will sign it.

There was a protest outside the courthouse against federal involvement.

Former mayor of Charlotte Jennifer Roberts joined the demonstrators.

Those demonstrators believe solving crime and supporting public safety should be done locally.

“Charlotte is showing up and saying, ‘We know our community best. We got this. We don’t need outside interference from folks in a different state who don’t know our community, who are trying to make a political point and not actually bringing a solution,’” Roberts said.

VIDEO: Iryna’s Law: New crime package aims to crack down on pretrial release

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