Congressman Ralph Norman, who represents South Carolina’s 5th district in the U.S. Congress, has criticized a Mecklenburg County judge’s decision not to revoke the bond of America Diehl, an accused accomplice in the 2020 murder of Mary Collins. Diehl is now awaiting trial while out on bond in York County, South Carolina.
Norman stated, “Mary’s family has endured unthinkable pain. Yet this judge let a violent offender remain free, proof of how liberal, soft-on-crime policies fail victims and endanger communities.”
Mary Collins, aged 20 at the time, was murdered in Charlotte after being lured to an apartment by people she believed were friends. She was stabbed over 130 times and her body was wrapped in plastic. The case drew significant attention and led to calls for changes in the justice system.
During a Judiciary Committee field hearing in Charlotte, Norman met Collins’ grandmother, Mia Alderman, who has advocated for justice reform.
Norman added, “This isn’t about politics; it’s about protecting people. If you’re charged with a brutal murder, you shouldn’t be out on bond. That’s common sense. Democrat-run cities have turned ‘criminal justice reform’ into ‘criminal protection reform.’ It’s time to restore sanity and put victims, not criminals, first.”
Norman, born in Rock Hill, South Carolina in 1953, has served in Congress since 2017 after replacing Mick Mulvaney. He previously served in the South Carolina House of Representatives from 2005 to 2017 and is a graduate of Presbyterian College.
