NC lawmakers urge National Guard deployment in Charlotte amid crime spike

First on Fox: Citing frustration with continued crime, three North Carolina lawmakers urged Democratic Gov. Josh Stein to deploy the National Guard to Charlotte, saying the city’s condition has become “increasingly dire.”

“Recently, the city experienced eight homicides in seven days. The homicide rate in uptown Charlotte is now 200% higher than it was a year ago,” the letter read. “According to the Fraternal Order of Police, aggravated assaults involving knives or guns rose from 86 in 2024 to 111 in 2025, and strong-arm personal robberies increased from 26 to 31 in the same period.”

The request doesn’t just come from the state’s congressional delegation, said Rep. Mark Harris, R-N.D., one of the letter’s authors.

“This is not just my idea. This is the Fraternal Order of Police coming in, saying they think this is important and asking the governor and the mayor to step in and do this,” Harris said, referring to a similar letter posted by Charlotte-Mecklenburg law enforcement earlier this year.

Police unions in major cities support federal deployments, but local leaders are pushing back

The three signatories of the letter, Harris, Rep. Pat Harrigan and Rep. Chuck Edwards, all represent the Charlotte area.

North Carolina’s letter comes as President Donald Trump has used the National Guard to draw attention to crime in cities like Washington, D.C., Memphis, Chicago and others. So far, the administration has deployed the National Guard in six metropolitan areas and rolled out deployments in five others — even as courts weigh the use of federal forces to tackle local crimes.

The North Carolina lawmakers’ letter pointed to these deployments as a model of success.

“Other cities have deployed the National Guard and seen positive results. In Washington, D.C., when President Trump deployed troops under his lawful authority, the city immediately saw a decrease in crime, including twelve consecutive days without a single homicide,” the letter read.

That’s also the thinking of members of the House Republican Conference leadership. Rep. Steve Scalise, Republican of Los Angeles, called it a continuation of the administration’s work. Scalise serves the conference as majority leader – the No. 2 Republican in the chamber.

“Millions of Americans don’t feel safe in many once-great cities, and President Trump is working with House Republicans to change that. As we saw in D.C. and Memphis, President Trump has taken decisive action, cleaned up our streets, and made those cities safer,” Scalise said.

“I commend my colleagues from North Carolina for exposing violent crime in Charlotte and working to make the city safer for residents and visitors, and encouraging more leaders to do the same,” he added.

Memphis residents are divided over the deployment of the National Guard to fight crime in the city

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Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Los Angeles, serves the conference as majority leader — the No. 2 Republican in the chamber. (Getty Images)

According to the Charlotte Police Department’s quarterly statistics report, violent crimes, commercial robberies and car thefts have been on the rise in Charlotte since last year. But other crimes such as homicides, rapes, property crimes and arson are down modestly from 2024 levels. In many categories, current crime levels in Charlotte are significantly lower than rates in 2022 and 2023, with some exceptions.

Harris thinks they could go down.

He does not believe that deploying the National Guard is a long-term solution to combating crime. Instead, Harris believes an increased law enforcement presence could create an opportunity for local police forces to find a foothold.

“What I hope will come out of it is that during that time, the police will be able to go after these bad guys, who are threatening this crime environment. And then, ultimately, that will create hope, and a cry from the public that says, ‘We’re not going to accept our crime-ridden city anymore.'”

When asked what needs to change to make Charlotte safe, with or without the National Guard, Harris said the city needs to prioritize its policies and resources to keep violent crime offenders off the streets.

“After the murder of Irina Zarutska, it highlighted a real problem of not keeping criminals behind bars,” Harris said, referring to the 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee who was stabbed to death on a Charlotte train.

Charlotte City Councilman calls for ‘thin’ crime statistics after killing of Ukrainian refugees

Irina Zarutska cowers as her attacker hovers above her. (NewsNation via Charlotte Area Transit System)

“In her case, the guy was arrested 14 times, put out on the street. These are things that have a lot of issues to address. This is a judicial matter.”

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Although previous efforts to deploy the National Guard have been met with protests from Democratic governors in other states, Harris is hopeful that Stein will work with the Trump administration as needed if it becomes clear that a National Guard deployment is needed.

Stein’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.