Roy Cooper defends COVID-era prisoner release settlement

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate and former North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper addressed a controversial COVID-era prisoner release settlement in a recent interview. Cooper stated that the settlement, which resulted in the early release of approximately 3,500 inmates, was a court-ordered requirement that the state had to fulfill.

Cooper noted that some parties, specifically the plaintiffs involved in the case, were “very frustrated” that a larger number of prisoners were not released under the agreement. The 2021 settlement was reached between his administration and civil rights groups to reduce prison populations during the pandemic.

Republican opponent Michael Whatley has made the settlement a central theme of his campaign, criticizing Cooper’s record on crime. Whatley has suggested the actual number of released convicts could exceed 4,200. The controversy gained further attention following reports that certain individuals released under the deal, including a man charged in a murder, were among those freed.