For weeks, an ad from a political action committee (PAC) called Senate Leadership Fund has been appearing on North Carolina televisions, and it has over 26 million views on YouTube.
The PAC’s mission is to support Republican candidates, like GOP Senate nominee Michael Whatley, who is running against former Gov. Roy Cooper (D) for the US Senate.
Appearing in the ad is a man named Ronald Hayes, whose son, Shemar, 23, was tragically murdered in Charlotte on March 12, 2024.
The ad, however, falsely implies Cooper’s policies were connected to the killing. What’s more, Hayes said he was tricked into appearing in it.
The ad refers to a settlement Cooper’s administration reached with civil rights groups after they filed a lawsuit during the COVID-19 pandemic over NC prison conditions.
The state settled the lawsuit in February 2021 and agreed to release at least 3,500 prisoners.
Shemar’s killer, 18-year-old Tyzavian Smith, was arrested and charged with murder. He pleaded guilty to the crime and will serve a minimum of 13 years in prison.
The ad implies that Smith was one of the 3,500 people released as part of the settlement. However, that’s not possible.
Smith was 15 years old at the time the suit was settled. Records show he was not in jail then.
“Therefore he could not have been and was not included in the COVID-19 settlement,” North Carolina Department of Adult Correction spokesperson Keith Acree told WRAL.
Apart from the ad’s inaccuracies, a moral issue was brought forth when Hayes told the Greensboro News & Record he was deceived into appearing in the ad.
“When I saw the ad, I called them and told them they used me,” Hayes said.
Not only did Hayes say his story was used in a political ad without his knowledge, he also said he is a Democrat and Cooper supporter.
“I’ve voted for Cooper in the past and will continue to do so,” he said.
A mother who lost her child to gun violence speaks out
Like Ronald Hayes, Charlotte resident Sevhn Robinson understands the pain of losing a child.
On Aug. 8, 2017, her son, Kyyri, was killed in a shooting at just 25 years old.
Each year, she hosts the Mega Mommy March in the Queen City. It is an annual event remembering victims of gun violence and supporting grieving families.
“I know the process of this grieving when you lose a child,” Robinson told Cardinal & Pine. “People don’t understand what we go through from the time we receive that call moving forward. The pain doesn’t stop. It’s been 9 years for me. There can be a car going down the street that’s just like my son’s car, and it starts all over again.”
She described the act of deceiving a parent like Hayes, whose child was murdered, into appearing in a political ad as “disgusting.” She said the ad needs to be taken down and that the Senate Leadership Fund owes Hayes an apology.
“It saddens me. The only thing I can say is ‘shame on you,’” she said. “They are owed an apology, a sincere apology. You need to get on TV, the same way that you’re running that ad on TV—you need to get on TV, and apologize to this man for doing what you’ve done.”
