Rep. Harrigan (NC-10), who represents Winston-Salem, urged Gov. Josh Stein to send the National Guard to Charlotte because of a supposed rise in violent crime, but the statistics tell a different story.
Reps. Mark Harris (NC-08) and Chuck Edwards (NC-11) joined the letter to Gov. Stein on Nov. 5, but none of them represent the city of Charlotte. Rep. Harrigan did not respond to a request for comment.
U.S. Border Patrol agents arrived in Charlotte on Saturday, Nov. 15, according to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office. Mecklenburg County and Charlotte officials say they did not receive any information from the federal government regarding the number of agents involved, the duration of the operation, or the specifics of the operation.
The agents arrested over 130 people in the first 48 hours of the operation, and there are now agents in Raleigh, NC.
The letter follows the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), a nonprofit group for sworn law enforcement officers, formally requesting federal support from Gov. Stein and President Trump on Oct. 3.
The FOP said that staff shortages are stressing the police force.
“The current crime-fighting strategies and strained staffing are unsustainable,” the FOP wrote in their letter. “They place an unacceptable burden on our officers and jeopardize both their safety and the public’s…Despite statistical progress, violent crime continues to be a daily reality in Charlotte.”
According to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police department’s third-quarter report, the city saw an 8% drop in overall crime and a 20% decline in violent offenses.
However, the representatives cited other statistics in their letter, claiming the city was in dire need of federal assistance.
“The situation in our state’s largest city has become increasingly dire,” the representatives wrote. “Recently, the city faced 8 homicides in 7 days. The murder rate in uptown Charlotte is now 200% higher than it was a year ago.”
Harris, who represents the district outside Charlotte, criticized Stein for disregarding the police union.
“Governor Stein is deaf to the desperate pleas of Charlotte’s police and residents,” Harris said. “He refuses reinforcements to crush the violent crime surge — exposing him and his party as pro-crime Democrats who coddle criminals while ignoring victims.”
The representatives also referenced the fatal stabbing of Ukrainian refugee Iryan Zarutska on a Charlotte train in August. A video of Zarutska’s death garnered national attention in September.
Sergeant Todd Martin of the Southeast Service Area Crime Reduction Unit said repeat offenders are a critical problem in Charlotte’s criminal justice system.
“We continue to see a troubling pattern: a disproportionate number of violent incidents and property crimes are being committed by individuals with extensive criminal histories — many of whom continue to cycle through the justice system without facing meaningful consequences,” Martin said. “The cycle of catch and release does not reduce crime in our community.”
Gov. Stein’s office, which has so far declined to send the National Guard to Charlotte, said local officials knew best how to police the streets of Charlotte.
“Local, well-trained law enforcement officers who live in and know their communities are best equipped to keep North Carolina neighborhoods safe, not military service members,” a spokesperson for Stein said.
In early October, Mayor Vi Lyles said Charlotte had the resources to manage its own challenges.
“Given the time we have to work with the White House and other federal offices, we will not need the Guard to come to Charlotte,” Lyles said.
Democratic Rep. Alma Adams, who represents the majority of Charlotte, has not responded to the letter, but opposed the national guard deployment in October.
President Trump so far has deployed or is in the process of deploying National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland, Oregon and Memphis, Tennessee.
