Nearly half of the 3,500 inmates former Gov. Roy Cooper, D-N.C., released as part of a COVID-era settlement with a civil rights group have committed new offenses, according to the New York Post.

The outlet pointed to a 2024 report from the state's Sentencing and Policy Advisory Commission which found that 48% of the 3,500 people released committed additional crimes.

Of those, the Post found, more than 600 committed serious crimes after their release, including 18 who have since been charged with murder.

“Nineteen innocent North Carolinians are dead because Roy Cooper chose to let violent criminals walk free," said North Carolina GOP Senate candidate Michael Whatley, who is running against Cooper. “This was a deliberate, reckless choice that prioritized violent criminals ahead of innocent North Carolinians. Roy Cooper failed at his most basic duty as governor, protecting the people of North Carolina.”

Cooper's record on crime has been a source of criticism from the Republican camp, with Whatley and his allies zeroing in on the 2025 killing of Iryna Zarutska on a Charlotte metro. Her alleged killer, DeCarlos Brown, was among those listed as released in Cooper's settlement, though he was released months earlier.

The Cooper campaign directed the Post to Whatley's own scandal. The Republican has faced scrutiny over his appointment of Harvey West, a convicted sex offender, to a state committee. The state GOP has denied that Whatley appointed West to the local district committee, though his appointment took place while Whatley led the state GOP, Politifact reported.

Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent at Just the News. Follow him on X.