Decarlos Brown Jr, the 35-year-old homeless man who stabbed 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska to death on a public transport ride in Charlotte, North Carolina in September 2025, has been found incompetent to stand trial by medical experts at a local hospital.
Now it is up to the judge in the state court in charge of the criminal case against Brown if he accepts the findings of the reports. If he does so without prejudice, the defendant cannot stand trial until his competency is restored. If he does so with prejudice, the case will be dismissed; while if he does not accept the findings, the prosecution moves forward.
The defence requested a 180-day delay on his competency hearing before the judge, which the prosecution did not object to, thus we will only find out the ruling in about six months. The evaluation itself took place in December 2025, but its findings were just recently unsealed by the court.
‘Under North Carolina law, a defendant is deemed capable to proceed to trial if they can understand the nature and object of the proceedings, comprehend his or her situation in reference to the proceedings, and assist in his or her defence in a rational or reasonable manner,’ the New York Post writes in their reporting about the development.
The killing of Iryna Zarutska sparked international outrage.
The attack against her had seemingly no motive (although some alleged racial hatred), and was excessively gruesome. What’s more, the alleged perpetrator had 14 prior arrests, in many cases for violent offences, yet was free to roam the streets of Charlotte. His family claims that he has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, but that has not been confirmed in public court documents.
The outrage over the case grew so intense after the killing that even President Trump shared his opinion, calling for the death penalty for the defendant.
What Happens to Iryna Zarutska’s Killer Now?
In cases where a defendant is found incompetent to stand trial in the state of North Carolina, separate proceedings determine whether they should be involuntarily committed to a state psychiatric facility or released under conditions while undergoing treatment. Due to limited capacity, not all defendants found incompetent are committed.
Given the violent and high-profile nature of Brown’s case, it is likely that, even if the court were to accept the findings on his incompetency with prejudice, he would be held in a secure psychiatric facility for treatment or be subject to civil commitment proceedings if deemed a danger to others.
However, none of this matters in his case, as he remains in federal custody facing separate federal charges as well.
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