Senate PAC wrongly blames NC’s Roy Cooper for Charlotte homicide
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
In an attempt to besmirch former Gov. Roy Cooper, The Senate Leadership Fund is airing another ad connecting the release of prisoners during the COVID-19 pandemic to an unrelated homicide.
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Cooper, 69, a Democrat from Raleigh, is running against former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley, 57, of Gastonia, in North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race. Cooper was in his second-term as governor when the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020.
In March 2024, Tyzavian Smith, then-18, shot and killed Shemar Hayes, 23, in Charlotte and stole his 2019 Buick Regal, according to court documents.
A 911 caller told dispatchers that Hayes was in the roadway, badly bleeding. Police pronounced Hayes dead from a gunshot wound within 9 minutes of the 911 call.
SLF’s ad shows Hayes’ father, Ronald, talking about his son’s death.
“My son was murdered two-and-a-half years ago here in Charlotte,” Ronald says, talking over images of his son.
The video then cuts to Ronald speaking.
“A coward walked up and got into the passenger side of his car,” Ronald said. “Shot him five times in the face.”
Ronald then redirects his message to Cooper.
“As the governor, Mr. Cooper was allowing these criminals back onto the streets,” Ronald said.
As he speaks a modified version of a 2021 News & Observer headline appears on screen saying, “Roy Cooper ‘to release 3,500 state prison inmates early.” The real headline read: “NC to release 3,500 state prison inmates early in COVID lawsuit agreement.”
In 2021, North Carolina officials released 3,500 inmates as part of a court settlement after being sued by several civil rights groups who wanted 18,000 prisoners released.
The COVID-19 pandemic was tearing through the state prisons, and Cooper refused to sign an executive order to release prisoners in an attempt to slow the virus’ spread. But when a judge told state officials he would likely side with the plaintiffs, finding the prisons had become unconstitutional, state officials agreed to the smaller release number.
But Smith was not among those released.
At the time, Smith would have just turned 15. And while juvenile records are sealed in North Carolina, he would not have been among the 3,500 inmates released from prison. Juveniles with a record are held in the North Carolina Division of Juvenile Justice in juvenile detention centers and youth detention centers.
The only crime that shows on Smith’s public records is the death of Hayes. Smith is serving a minimum of 13 years and one month in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder in Hayes’ fatal shooting.
“Independent fact-checkers have called these attacks false and misleading — Michael Whatley is getting desperate and it’s shameful that he’s using heinous crimes to boost his attacks,” said Jordan Monaghan, a spokesman for Cooper.
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This isn’t the only ad from SLF proved to be false by fact-checkers. Another, currently airing, blames Cooper for a homicide that happened in South Carolina. The perpetrator has no convictions in North Carolina, but SLF is blaming Cooper.
SLF is a national super-PAC aimed at electing Republicans to the Senate.
SLF isn’t making any apologies for misleading the public.
“Roy Cooper’s soft-on-crime policies and his decision to release thousands of violent criminals from prison early has led to needless tragedy and made the Tar Heel State less safe,” said Chris Gustafson, the Senate Leadership Fund’s communication director, in a written statement. “Senate Leadership Fund will continue to remind North Carolinians of his deadly record.”
To complicate matters, Ronald now says, first to The (Greensboro) News & Record, that he supports Cooper. He said when he agreed to go on video about his son’s death he thought he was making a push against gun violence, not starring in a political ad.
SLF provided McClatchy Ronald’s release form with some redacted information, including who the producer was and Ronald’s understanding of what the finished copy might be incorporated into. He waived his right to inspect the final product.
SLF also provided McClatchy text messages the group says are between Ronald and SLF’s state director. The texts begin Aug. 4, and thank Ronald for sharing his story.
They then provide the ad titled “Roy Cooper: Releasing Criminal Back on the Street,” and suggest a written statement to go along with the news release for the ad.
Ronald agrees to a quote that attacks Cooper for allowing violent criminals a second chance, when his son wouldn’t get one. He replies that both the ad and the quote “is absolutely perfect.”
Ronald did not return a message from McClatchy this week, but spoke to multiple media outlets last week saying he “was swindled.”
He told WRAL he did sign the document and sign off on the news release, but he gets requests all the time and signs off without reading them. He said he did not realize he signed off on allowing SLF to insinuate his son’s death was because of the prison release.
“The commercial looks as if I’m trying to sway North Carolinians from voting the way that they want to vote, and that wasn’t my agenda,” Hayes told NC Newsline. “I wanted to let the community know about gun violence and about my son being murdered.”
“Once I saw the commercial, I called [the ad makers] back and I asked them again, and they stated again that they are independent,” Hayes said to the news outlet. “I told them that I felt that this was deceiving, it was conniving and it was sneaky how they used me and my family to get out their word.”
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