A beloved North Carolina science teacher and mother of two was killed in her Raleigh home after a judge released a mentally ill defendant despite prosecutors warning that he should not be free, authorities said.
Zoe Walsh, a longtime science teacher at Ravenscroft School in Raleigh, North Carolina, was assaulted and killed early Jan. 3 after calling 911 to report a man breaking into her home, according to police, reports Newsmax's Jason Mattera on "Wake Up America" on Tuesday.
"This was a senseless murder. [He] should have been in jail, should have never been let out of jail," one family member said.
Authorities said Walsh was on the phone with a 911 dispatcher when the suspect began attacking her.
Officers arrived to find her severely injured, and she later died at a hospital.
Police identified the suspect as 36-year-old Ryan Camacho, who was charged with murder and felony burglary.
Court records obtained by Newsmax show Camacho had at least two dozen arrests over roughly 20 years, including a 2019 charge for shooting into an occupied property and a 2021 escape from a state prison.
"You got criminals, you lock up criminals, you leave them locked up. You don't let them out," one critic said.
"This being soft on crime, it's causing too much havoc. It's causing too many tears. It's causing too many deaths in this state."
Just weeks before the killing, prosecutors petitioned a Wake County District Court judge to involuntarily commit Camacho following another arrest involving larceny and breaking and entering.
Court records show the judge dismissed the charges after a mental competency evaluation, allowing Camacho to be released.
"This judge should have his robe stripped from him immediately. He is at fault for this woman's death. He is totally 100% at fault. He's just as guilty as the man who walked into her house one month later," one critic said.
Walsh was described as a beloved member of the school community, known for her warmth and dedication to students.
"Her smile, she was always happy, and now that smile has been snuffed out forever," Mattera reported.
North Carolina State Rep. Brenden Jones said he is working with Republican colleagues to form a legislative oversight committee aimed at holding judges accountable when court decisions endanger public safety.
"Even after he was found mentally unfit to stand trial for his offenses, in addition to his two-decade-long crime spree, none of this makes sense," Mattera said. "And it's so frustrating, and it didn't need to happen."
Camacho remains in custody as the case proceeds.
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