(Carolina Journal) – Jaleeyah's Law, the legislation aimed at toughening the state’s response to gang-related crime, has advanced through a committee in the North Carolina House of Representatives.
The bill is named for Jaleeyah Tune of Goldsboro, a 13-year-old shot and killed Dec. 21, 2025. The case involved an ambush-style shooting by teenagers believed to have gang ties.
Tune was walking home with her sister when it happened. Goldsboro police charged three teenage boys with first-degree murder and felony conspiracy in connection with the shooting. Because the suspects are juveniles, their names have not been released.
Jaleeyah's Law, known also as House Bill 1173, was heard in the Judiciary 2 Committee. Tune’s mother, Whitney, told lawmakers that her daughter’s death has left lasting damage on her family and community.
“She was only 13 years old,” she said. "Our lives are forever changed."
She's hopeful the legislation can help “save other lives with prevention and intervention.”
The proposal, supporters say, would strengthen criminal gang laws by creating tougher penalties and increasing law enforcement options to deter gang-related crime. Rather than focusing on a single penalty, the bill would affect several aspects of criminal law, including gang recruitment, firearm possession, sentencing enhancements, and the legal definition of criminal gang activity.
Primary sponsors are Reps. John Bell, R-Wayne; and Sarah Stevens, R-Surry.
“This law is the result of a tragic incident that happened in our community where a beloved 13-year-old little girl was murdered four days before Christmas last year,” Bell said. “It shocked our community; it rocked our community; and the whole community in our area grieved.”
Bell said Tune’s family wanted to “do something in a big way” to help prevent another family in North Carolina from experiencing the same loss.
Bell said the proposal is designed to give prosecutors clearer tools.
“The North Carolina Criminal Gang Suppression Act, originally passed in 2008, requires near impossible evidence to prove criminal gang activity, leadership, and membership,” Bell said. “This bill puts realistic definitions in place while still putting the world on notice of what gang activity and gang crime in North Carolina is.”
The measure would increase punishment for recruiting others into criminal gang activity, with stiffer penalties when the person recruited is under 18. Online recruitment is addressed as well. Jaleeyah’s Law would make social media and other digital communications part of the recruitment statute, reflecting concerns that gang recruitment increasingly happens online.
The bill would also strengthen sentencing enhancements for felonies committed as part of criminal gang activity, meaning defendants could face more serious charges and longer sentences when prosecutors prove a gang connection.
Firearms are another major focus. Under the proposal, someone identified by a North Carolina court as a criminal gang member could be charged with a felony for possessing, owning, purchasing, or controlling a firearm. Gang members would face additional penalties for using, carrying, or possessing a firearm during certain violent or drug-related crimes.
The proposal drew concerns from civil-liberties advocates and some lawmakers, who warned that the bill could sweep too broadly.
Rep. Deb Butler, D-New Hanover, said she supports holding criminals accountable but is concerned about how broadly the bill defines gang involvement.
“What we don’t want to do is create a dragnet that is so broad that it targets people who are merely guilty by association,” Butler said. “Criminals need to be in jail. Let me be clear about that again. But we don’t want to give up our civil rights or our constitutional rights and put people in jail who are not guilty of a crime.”
A representative from the American Civil Liberties Union opposed the bill, saying that lowering the threshold for identifying someone as a gang member raises First Amendment and due-process concerns.
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