In August 2025, 23‑year‑old Iryna Zarutska, a Ukrainian refugee living in Charlotte, North Carolina, was fatally stabbed on a light‑rail train. The crime triggered widespread public outrage and sparked calls for tougher protections, especially against repeat violent offenders.

In response, the North Carolina legislature fast‑tracked a sweeping criminal‑justice overhaul nicknamed Iryna’s Law (House Bill 307). The bill includes significant changes: it limits cash‑free or “cashless” bail for violent repeat offenders, mandates more rigorous mental‑health evaluations for defendants, tightens pre‑trial release conditions, and accelerates appeal timelines for death‑penalty cases.

One of the most controversial parts of the law concerns capital punishment. North Carolina has not carried out an execution since 2006.  Under Iryna’s Law, if the state’s sole method of execution (lethal injection) were declared unconstitutional or become unavailable, the law authorizes the secretary of the state’s corrections department to pick another method that is used in another state — for example a firing squad or electrocution. The bill does not explicitly mandate a firing squad, but the legal language opens that door. However, Governor Josh Stein, who signed the law on October 3, 2025, publicly declared that he will not allow a firing squad during his term, calling the provision “barbaric.”