New Butterfly Speciesโ Honors iryna Zarutska, Charlotte Stabbing Victim
Charlotte, N.C. – A newly identified butterfly species has been named Iryna’sโฃ Azure in memory of Iryna Zarutska, the 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee murdered in Charlotte, North Carolina,โ on August 22, 2023. The butterfly, โคwhich primarily flies in April in South Carolina, โfeatures light-blue wings, sometimes with โa โviolet-blue tint.
The naming was announced by Harry Pavulaan, president and director ofโข the International โLepidoptera Survey, who published a report detailing the species in September.Tho first spotted inโข South Carolina in 1985, the butterfly remained unnamed until Pavulaan examined specimens collected during a 2018 โขtrip. โคInspired by videos documenting zarutska’s death, Pavulaan expedited the publication and dedicated โคthe butterfly’s name to her.
“The species name is a tribute toโฃ Iryna Zarutska,” pavulaan wrote in the paper’s etymology section,โฃ “the 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee who wasโฃ senselessly murdered on August 22, 2023,โ on a Charlotte, N.C. transit car. Common name: Iryna’s Azure.The name is derived from the Greek goddess โof peace, and is associated with tranquility, harmony and serenity.”
zarutska’s death sparked legislative โaction in North Carolina. “Iryna’s Law,” โขHouse Bill โค307, wasโฃ passed by the north Carolina Legislatureโค and signed โคinto law by Governorโข Josh Stein in October. The bill aims โฃto reform the state’s criminal justice system by modifying pretrialโค release conditions, notably forโฃ those charged with violent offenses.
Decarlos Brown Jr. has been charged with Zarutska’s murder and causing death on a mass transportation system. He is currently held without bond โat the Mecklenburg County Jailโค and faces aโ maximumโค penalty of โlife in prison orโฃ the death sentence. Police records indicate Brown has a โขhistory of assault andโ weapons charges, and also a documented history โฃof mental illness.
The Violence Policy Center reports โฃthat over 2,400 women were killed by men โขinโ the โU.S.in 2022.
