WEEK Wayne
Another angel down
For the second time in 16 months, a 15-year-old girl was murdered by a young person with a gun. And this time, the killer hunted, tortured, and shot the victim while other young people laughed and cheered.
by
Ken Fine / p. 12
AUGUST 18, 202 4 Volume 2, Issue 1 NEWOLDNORTH.COM
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EDITOR Ken Fine
EDITOR Renee Carey
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CONTENTS
4
New, smaller "Tent City" emerges
The Goldsboro Police Department is getting calls from businesses located near the Goldsboro Family YMCA about a new homeless encampment taking shape in the area.
8 School Board eyes retreat
A year after the Wayne County Board of Education faced backlash for traveling to Ocracoke for its "public" board retreat, School Board members are planning this year's planning session.
12 Cover story
A 15-year-old girl was hunted, tortured, and murdered on Audubon Avenue Aug. 10, offering Goldsboro Police Chief Mike West a sobering reminder that the city's gun violence crisis is far from under control.
14 A message from Brandi Matthews
Goldsboro's mayor pro tem offers her thoughts on the murder of a 15-year-old girl — speaking, as a black woman, about what black-on-black violence is doing to the inner-city community.
16 Spectator
High school sports are back and the Charles B. Aycock boys soccer team picked up where it left off last season — notching a decisive victory over North Lenoir.
19 The Aug. 11, 2024 edition
Tropical Storm Debby might have forced us to "go digital" last week, but for those of you who have no interest in reading off a screen, the Aug. 11 Wayne Week is inside.
NEWS + VIEWS
Another Tent City, albeit a smaller one, emerges
Goldsboro police say they are beginning to receive complaints about a homeless encampment located in the woods behind the Goldsboro Family YMCA.
BY KEN FINE
Every few weeks, a new encampment pops up in a fresh location.
It has been that way since late March, when the Goldsboro Police Department, at the behest of city leaders, officially evicted the homeless population that had, for years, laid claim to private property nestled beyond the tree line off Royall Avenue.
First, they resettled off the Stoney Creek North Greenway and in a patch of woods along U.S. 117 behind a storage facility.
But then, calls from concerned residents and business owners hit the GPD’s phone lines.
There were reports of “suspicious people,” “trespassing,” and “thefts.”
There were allegations of “aggressive panhandling” and broad-daylight drug use.
And after those communities were shuttered as a result, the city’s unhoused population moved on.
Some former Tent City residents began camping out around a home on Randall Lane — and moved inside and refused to leave the property after the GPD found the owner, Mansel Rowe, dead inside the residence on May 5.
And now, Goldsboro Police Chief Mike West said tents are popping up behind the Goldsboro Family YMCA.
“We just started getting calls from businesses in the area the other day,” he said. “So, now we’ll have to go out there and get trespass agreements and work the process again. It seems like every time we get them to move on from a particular site, they plant their flag on another piece of property.”
West admitted it is getting “frustrating” — particularly when his still-depleted force has to spend time it could be using to, say, fight gang and gun violence issues, to pursue people who repeatedly break the law by deciding they have the right to live on somebody else’s land.
But there is another problem, too — one the chief characterized as “the biggest” issue involving Goldsboro’s homeless community.
“The biggest problem we’ve got right now is at Sheetz and some of the convenience stores,” he said. “We’ve got people sleeping outside the business when the business is open or going inside and sleep-
ing at the tables and causing a problem when they’re asked to leave.”
It has been nearly six months since Tent City was shuttered by the GPD, but there is little evidence that, despite an organized effort orchestrated by local non-profits to help the unhoused get back on their feet, a significant dent has been made in Goldsboro’s dual homelessness and addiction crises.
In fact, the vast majority of the population that lived beyond the tree line off Royall Avenue flat out declined the help they had been offered.
When the Salvation Army agreed to open an emergency shelter and the United Way spent
We just started getting calls from businesses in the area the other day.
hundreds of dollars to ensure security was in place, nobody from the encampment showed up.
“We tried to share that message of it being available for, I think, maybe the last five weeks or so,” United Way Executive Director Sherry Archibald told Wayne Week earlier this year. “And when no one came, we still had security we needed to pay for.”
The next night? Same result.
And a similar scene unfolded inside the DMV after Archibald figured out a way to get several Tent City residents ID cards they said they desperately needed.
Continued on page 7
According to the Goldsboro Police Department, a new homeless encampment is forming behind the Goldsboro Family YMCA.
PHOTO BY KEN FINE
West has said repeatedly that he is puzzled by the fact that nobody will take the help being offered.
And City Councilwoman Beverly Weeks, who serves the homeless population through Cry Freedom Missions, and has seen evidence of encampments in her district, said shortterm solutions, like providing food, supplies, and Narcan to the city’s homeless population, have not been effective in resolving the crisis.
“It’s challenging to navigate this situation,” Weeks said. “It’s worth noting that our motives that are often rooted in compassion can enable and prolong destructive behavior by meeting immediate needs without addressing the core issue.”
And as long as one of the core issues, addiction, is at play, West fears crime will follow the unhoused wherever they set up once the YMCA encampment is shuttered.
At this point, West said he sympathizes with business owners and local residents who call law enforcement because of the “suspicious activity” that seems, to local law enforcement, to always unfold in the vicinity of homeless communities.
“I share their frustration because it’s just a never-ending process,” he said.
But deep down, he understood the cri -
sis was not simply going to disappear because the Tent City off Royall Avenue was cleared out.
“We knew this was going to happen,” West said. “And we do have better things
to do than this, but as long as (homelessness) keeps contributing to crime in the city and blight in the area, we’re going to stay after it.”
Goldsboro is not the only North Carolina
community trying to find a solution to unwanted encampments.
In April, dozens of people were evicted from a Tent City of sorts in the grassy area where U.S. 70 and U.S. 401 split near the Raleigh/Garner border.
And the same thing has happened everywhere from Gastonia to Wilmington.
But a recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in City of Grants Pass v Johnson gave local governments the authority to address encampments should they pop up in public spaces — holding that the “enforcement of generally applicable laws regulating camping on public property does not constitute ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ prohibited by the Eighth Amendment and the prohibition, by the Oregon city, of the homeless using pillows, blankets, and cardboard boxes while sleeping there, was legal.
In some states, like California, the ruling emboldened leaders to attack the issue more aggressively.
But thus far, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has yet to follow the lead of the chief executive of the Golden State, Gov. Gavin Newsome, who issued an executive order directing state agencies to ramp up enforcement against encampments, and encouraging cities to do the same, while awarding local governments more than $100 million to create housing for homeless families. n
A year after Ocracoke, School Board eyes another “retreat”
Members of the Wayne County Board of Education voted to allow their chairman to determine when and where planning meeting will take place .
BY RENEE CAREY
The last time the Wayne County Board of Education held a planning retreat, the School Board traveled to Ocracoke Island on the taxpayers’ dime — conducting what was publicized as a “public” meeting several hours, and a ferry ride, east of Goldsboro.
And during that session, the board talked about several issues that have, in the months since, come to fruition — including facilities changes that have resulted in the relocation of Wayne School of Engineering, Goldsboro High School, Wayne Academy, and Edgewood Community Developmental School.
But this year, BOE Chairman Craig Foucht asked for the “authority” to control, along with Vice Chairman Tommy Sanders and Superintendent Dr. Marc Whichard, the upcoming meeting.
And while no potential dates or venues were discussed at the Aug. 5 meeting after the topic was broached, board member Chris West said he expected to have input.
“I would like for you and Mr. Sanders to give the board some options. I don’t want you to just come in here and say, ‘This is where we’re going,’” he said. “Because this is a board decision. So, we need to pick a couple of venues and different things and see where people would rather go … where we can economically go that’s the most feasible place to get the biggest bang for our buck.”
The board’s decision to hold its retreat on Ocracoke in 2023 drew the ire of many teachers — some, who worked at Goldsboro High School — because they perceived the expenditure as a “slap in the face,” as they endured
extreme heat in classrooms without functioning air conditioning.
Others said they found the board’s trip to be “out of touch” and “tone deaf,” as they had been forced to turn to crowdsourcing platforms to raise funds for basic classroom supplies while the elected officials charged with supporting them ate crab legs and filet mignon on the NCCAT campus.
And they noted, as reported in an August 2023 edition of Wayne Week, that because board attorney Richard Schwartz serves on the NCCAT’s Development Foundation Board of Directors, the choice of location was a “blatant” conflict of interest, a perception the district, through its spokesman Ken Derksen, said was not a concern.
In recent years, other local boards have held their retreats in Wayne County — choosing to spend their money supporting local venues and restaurants.
In fact, the Goldsboro City Council’s recent planning session took place at the Goldsboro Event Center, offering the public an opportunity to attend without having to pay for excessive travel.
And the Wayne County Board of Commissioners had its retreat in February, opting to utilize space at the Maxwell Center.
It is unclear when Foucht will make his official recommendation, but he assured board member Len Henderson that every elected official would have an opportunity to provide wish lists as it relates to what items will appear on the meeting agenda.n
There are moments that make many of us wonder what went so very wrong.
Why does it seem like there is a world full of people who have no sense of right and wrong, who commit heinous deeds without thought that maybe what they are doing is not just illegal, but morally reprehensible?
And why are so many of them barely old enough to be in high school?
One of those watershed moments happened in Goldsboro this past week.
On video.
With no regard for decency or worry about consequences.
It was presented proudly — like it was a perfectly acceptable reaction to a perceived slight and an achievement.
And it involved a group of teenage girls.
The story is too graphic to share much of here, but let’s review a few of the key details.
A group of high school girls lured a 15-yearold girl out of her house Aug. 10 at just before 3 a.m.
Once they got her outside, they beat her and tazed her as she screamed in fear and pain. They mocked her when her friends fled the scene.
“Why they leaving you?” they gleefully proclaimed. “Why they leaving you, Maya?”
And then, they shot her.
The sounds — and some of the sights —
NO. WE ARE NOT EVEN CLOSE TO OK. { our TAKE }
were caught on tape.
We have cleaned up the language here, but in our cover story, we’ll give you more because we think you need to see it.
For now, use your imagination.
After the murder, the perpetrators made another video — one they live-streamed on social media.
The 15-year-old deserved what she got, one of them declared.
“Why should we give a (expletive)?” she said. “We don’t give a (expletive).”
Another chimed in.
“Spare nothing,” she said. “We ain’t sparing (expletive).”
Are you sick to your stomach yet?
The “why” is even worse.
It seems that 15-year-old had allegedly messed with the murderer’s “bae.”
For those who don’t speak street slang, that is her significant other.
That’s right. They tortured and killed a fellow teenager because they thought she messed around with someone’s boyfriend.
We want to say we are shocked, but we aren’t.
This is not the first time there has been an incident like this — or one that ended up getting thousands of views on social media.
Remember the 2023 Spring Break pool party where tempers got hot, shots were fired, and a teenage girl lost her life?
Remember the social media post about a
high school girl who got her head slammed into a curb when she was attacked by a group of her classmates?
How about the broad daylight murders inside Family Dollar, Food Lion, and outside the convenience store on Ash Street or the drive-by on East Mulberry Street?
All of them are bad news about the quality of the upbringing of the next generation — and the safety of the sons and daughters who are in our care.
It takes only one stray bullet or being in the wrong place at the wrong time for a second to change someone’s life forever — or to end it.
But make no mistake.
This one is different.
There was a certain depravity this time — a cruelty that led to this death.
So, we are asking the question now that many of you probably are — what has this world come to?
How do we have so many young people who are so cold, so calculating, so without moral compasses?
But we are not surprised that something like this would take place here — in this small community, our hometown.
These are the stories we — and the police, and teachers, and others who work with juveniles — have been warning you about.
We are losing a generation — some to moral bankruptcy and some to bullets.
They are everywhere — and there is no
remorse, no compassion, no sense that there might be a better way.
And it is scary.
But there is a glimmer of hope.
The Goldsboro Police Department is getting staffed up and doing what it can to clean up the mess that has become crime in this city.
But they can’t be everywhere. And they can’t arrest our way out of this.
This is a societal problem — and a big one. And fixing it will require some hard looks and even tougher analysis.
There isn’t a place for the usual caveats about children growing up in bad environments and every other excuse in the book that ignores the powerful pull of the need for personal responsibility.
To process the importance of this moment and its implications for our city and future, we have to look beneath the surface.
But we can — and should — ask a few things. First, what was a 15-year-old girl doing out of her house at nearly 3 a.m. — and why was there a pack of armed teenagers roaming around the 800 block of Audubon Avenue?
That’s right, you are thinking it, and we are going to say it — Where were the parents?
Those girls were fearless and without remorse because they know how this works. No one holds them accountable.
That’s why they felt so comfortable putting their actions on social media — just like the
students at several area high schools who film fights in their hallways.
No pride. No sense of right and wrong. No moral code.
That’s why they “represented” with such a horrific act, or rubber stamped it by posting it.
They saw nothing wrong with showcasing behavior like that.
Remember the gang-wannabes we talked about with Archbishop Anthony Slater a while back who did a video for social media where they flaunted automatic weapons while openly smoking marijuana and flashing wads of cash?
They weren’t worried either.
Perhaps now that GPD Chief Mike West is putting the gang task force as one of department’s top priorities, they should be.
And maybe, fingers crossed, the county district attorney will find a way to send a message — one we used to hear him say quite a bit. You know, all that stuff about “law and order” and “justice.”
Time will tell whether those who commit crimes in this county — at any age — will get the consequences they have earned or whether the continued whispers and diversions will derail even more attempts to keep this community, and its children, safe.
But get ready.
We expect quite a bit of silence — from those who see these crimes, know these victims and the perpetrators, but who do not have the courage or the moral code to speak up.
It’s the reason the young man who dozens of teenagers witnessed murder a 15-year-old girl at that Spring Break pool party last year has still not been brought to justice.
They are part of the reason this keeps happening.
And the people advising them to “keep quiet” have blood on their hands.
We can’t keep this up. We can’t pretend that it isn’t getting worse.
And, more importantly, we cannot forget that school starts very soon — and those who are in the know are worried because if these teenage girls aren’t brought to justice, they will be walking Wayne County Public Schools hallways in a matter of days.
So, we have to get tough.
No tolerance. No pity. No mercy. Consequences.
There have been too many excuses made for behavior like this — too many people who
would rather look for excuses to explain away the why; too many race baiters who make hay while the sun shines and while thousands of teens die needlessly each year.
We have failed to teach too many of them about honor and conflict resolution.
We have taught them instead that honor is best defended with bloodshed.
We have normalized violence on television, in movies, and in video games.
We throw platitudes at the problem because to this point, it has not really been OUR problem.
Some chant, march, and wear T-shirts — and our millionaires feign outrage in protest of a problem that does not really touch their lives.
They don’t face the minefield that is a poor neighborhood riddled with drugs and violence. They have fences and guard shacks.
And some of us think that is enough — that saying we are outraged and that something needs to be done is somehow doing our part.
That is, until one of our kids gets hit in the crossfire — the children and teens from loving, stable homes with parents who teach consequences as well as the meaning of honor and who demand self-control over anger and improper impulses.
But for now, it is just what happens in “those” neighborhoods. Watch.
It’s sad but true.
That will be the narrative.
The shock of this latest crime will wear off because it always does.
But we can’t forget.
We have to do more.
We have to demand more.
And we have to have an expectation of justice — and draw a line in the sand that prompts a significant reaction when it is crossed.
Another young teen’s life wasted — and, if we’re lucky, a few more who will spend a significant amount of time in jail cells.
But mark our words.
This same story will play out with different characters from the same neighborhoods again and again until we have the courage to change the way we attack this issue.
There is no more time to be afraid to call this what it is and arm our police — and elected leaders — with the courage to put an end to this cycle by any means necessary.
Not if we want to avoid another 15-yearold’s funeral. n
Another angel down
For the second time in 16 months, a 15-year-old girl was murdered by a young person with a gun. And this time, the killer hunted, tortured, and shot the victim while other young people laughed and cheered.
by KEN FINE
The numbers from July reflected a “significant” decrease from 2023.
During that month, only 69 shots-fired incidents were reported inside the city limits — a piece of data that, while still troubling, gave Goldsboro Police Chief Mike West reason to believe that measures put into place after the City Council held a special-called meeting in June to address escalating violence in the community were beginning to bear fruit.
But then, lawmen responded to a gruesome scene along the 800 block of Audubon Avenue at just before 3 a.m. Aug. 10.
And as tragic as it was to discover a 15-year-old girl dead from a gunshot wound, videos published on social media since tell a far more haunting tale.
In less than 90 seconds, Amaya had been hunted, tortured, and executed.
Her killer — and their associates — openly taunted her and seemed to relish in the fact that they were about to participate in taking a life.
Here is what the video shows:
A group of girls — armed with at least one firearm and a taser — approaches the scene of the murder.
They react after others flee and get inside a vehicle.
“Why they leaving you?” one of the girls says. “Why they leaving you, Maya? Get the (expletive). Get her.”
Moments later, a chase ensues.
“Get ’em. Get ’em,” a girl says. “Get Maya.”
Then, the taser sounds, followed by high-pitched screaming.
Gunshots follow.
As of press time, that video had been viewed more than 12,000 times.
Beyond the fact that another 15-yearold girl has been murdered inside the city limits — what happened to Amaya has quickly thrust the unsolved 2023 Spring Break pool party shooting that left 15-yearold Joyonna Pearsall dead back to the fore — West is as disturbed by the aftermath of this latest incident.
And he finds it particularly troubling that potential witnesses and/or participants feel safe sharing video footage on social media platforms.
“It just shows you that the generation that’s coming up — not all of them — but certain individuals in this generation, there’s no respect for another human being. There’s absolutely no respect. It’s all fun and games,” he said. “Maybe they don’t realize the finality of what took place or what could take place, but yeah, the laughing and the carrying on, you just get to a point where you don’t know what to do. I mean, how do you teach these teenagers something we all think is fundamental — to value human life?”
From an investigative standpoint, the spreading of what could potentially be key evidence is problematic, too.
“If you just take a step back, by putting that out there … whoever the suspect is, they are gonna know what video now is available in their case,” West said. “So, it helps them work an alibi or try to get the correct answers in place. It can potentially
I don't want to say it's a lost generation, but you do feel sometimes like there's a group of people you just can't help anymore.
help them build their defense.”
So, he is asking the public to tell their children that there is an alternative.
“We have to authenticate the video. If we can’t substantiate that video in court, that video is of no use to us as far as evidence is concerned. So, it would better for the person who actually took the video to submit it through CrimeStoppers. Then, it’s a more secure transfer and we can authenticate it,” he said. “People are willing to submit videos … and put them all over social media and that does not help our investigation. It actually compromises our investigation. So, we’re trying to let the public know, ‘If you’re willing to share a video and you’re a witness, instead of submitting it to social media sites or your friends on social media, submit it to CrimeStoppers.’”
After Amaya’s death, footage of a live stream began circulating on social media — one that has been characterized as everything from “vile” and “disgusting” to “shocking” and “a sign that Jesus is gettin’ ready to come back.”
It depicts a group of girls — purportedly, but not officially confirmed by the GPD, those involved in the murder.
“(Expletive) went and got shot. I ain’t even gonna lie y’all. They say she was dead. The law pronounced her dead,” one of the girls says.
A mural painted in memory of Joyonna Pearsall, a 15-year-old who was gunned down at a Spring Break pool party in 2023. PHOTO BY KEN FINE
“Why should we give a (expletive)?” another responds. “We don’t give a (expletive). Spare nothing. We ain’t sparing (expletive).”
Words like those uttered in the wake of a young girl’s death take their toll on West and his officers.
“It’s mentally draining — not just for me, but for all the officers,” the chief said. “Believe it or not, I actually think about this stuff 24/7. I’m trying to find ways to prevent this.”
But as more and more armed teenagers and young adults fire shots inside the city he has sworn to protect, he finds himself, these days, looking for a new approach — and wondering, out loud, if those caught in the throes of gangs and the street life mentality are savable.
“I don’t want to say it’s a lost generation, but you do feel sometimes like there’s a group of people you just can’t help anymore, so why aren’t we spending our resources on the younger people that haven’t gotten involved yet and prevent them from getting involved? You don’t want to do that, but it feels like that sometimes,” West said. “If individuals are out in the community and they’re committing crimes by selling dope and being in gangs and carrying firearms and they get shot and killed, it is tragic, but they kind of signed up for it. They knew the risks.”
the community will start to see more results — less shooting, less drug dealing out in the open, fewer murders, and more arrests.
Because at the moment, “we got so understaffed that we can’t be everywhere we need to be,” he said.
And the criminals know it.
“Certain people are still thinking, ‘The Police Department is down and out and nobody is gonna catch me,’” West said. “They think, ‘The chances of them catching us is way lower right now, so let’s just keep doing what we’re doing because they’re not gonna catch us.’”
But once his officers can do “what we do best” — community policing — he believes that mentality will change.
We were starting to see a little bit of a downward trend, but then we have this recent incident, and it doesn't matter what the numbers are. This one is that bad.
“I know that we’re capable. We’re a very capable agency. And once we get staffed up, we’re going to get back into these neighborhoods — back into these kids’ lives — and I do believe it will make a difference,” West said. “We’ve done it before, and we’ll do it again. But in the meantime, it’s just tragic what we’re going through.”
So, yes, the numbers from July reflected a “significant” decrease from 2023.
And yes, while the 69 shots-fired incidents reported were still troubling, they gave West reason to believe that measures put into place after the City Council held a special-called meeting in June to address escalating violence in the community were beginning to bear fruit.
FROM MY HEART TO YOURS
We find ourselves back in this place. Another act of senseless violence rips through our community leaving behind a massive trail of sorrow, pain, chaos & even fear. Another mother has to bury a child, her 15 year old daughter. Another one of our babies, gone. I’m hurt, really confused and you know what… I’m angry and my heart aches for every young lady involved in this.
As a black woman it pains me even the more to see our young black girls hurt each other. In a world where we, black women, are “the most disrespected, unprotected and neglected”, we deserve better from each other.
An unedited statement submitted by Goldsboro Mayor Pro Tem Brandi Matthews: Brandi Matthews
I cannot help but to ask myself, what happened, what went wrong? Why are our young black girls not seeing the crowns they all wear?
what, we can do a lot better than this! I have always heard, “it takes a village to raise a child.” So why are we pointing fingers in only one direction? Village, in this case, means a community that helps to provide a safe environment for our children to grow, realize their hopes & dreams, care, love & support. Are we doing that for our young people?
What were those young girls thinking? I wish I could talk to them, hold them. I might cannot for them, but I sure will make it my business to ensure I never miss another opportunity to be “village” for our babies.
But when a budding young woman is cut down long before her prime — or when more “ordinary” citizens get caught in crossfires or hit by stray bullets — “that makes it that much harder,” he said.
“When they say, ‘senseless,’ that’s senseless. So, we have to continue to adjust. We have to continue to change our tactics — almost weekly,” West said. “But sometimes, it does feel like it’s just constantly trying to put Band-Aids on things and it’s just very mentally draining. But that’s what I signed up for.”
His hope is that when his department returns to full staff in the coming months,
But there is no room for celebration inside the GPD.
Not now, as investigators attempt to serve justice to those responsible for Amaya’s death.
“We were starting to see a little bit of a downward trend, but then we have this recent incident, and it doesn’t matter what the numbers are. This one is that bad,” West said. “And now that these videos are all over social media, how many of the women in these videos — whether they were participating or just filming it and laughing — are going to be the next intended targets? It just keeps building.”n
To you, young girl, you are magic & the world is better with you in it. You possess in you the power to shape your own future, for better or for worse. Choose better for YOU and all of us that need your light. I WANT YOU TO LIVE. I want to see you one day sitting in the same seat I fought so hard to sit in. I want you to walk through the doors that so many of us courageous black women have kicked open for you. I hope that you always see me as an ally, a friend, a sister! I want you to know without doubt or question that there are women that will rally around, support, protect and uplift you. I truly hope your interactions with mean & hateful women are few. It happens way too often & it is truly sad to see & experience.
I want us more seasoned women to be better examples to our young ladies by being better to each other, too. Let’s create more spaces for them to see us proving that genuine friendships filled with love & support are important & they do exist. Who can understand our day to day better than us?
I would be naïve to think that we can completely eliminate crime, but I tell you
I was there when hundreds of us poured into our downtown to stand united & demanded accountability and justice for George Floyd! Y’all ready? I’m saying let’s do that for this baby and ALLLLLLLL our babies.
I support the organizations and people starting programs and all the things. As for me, I want to encourage us all to start right where we are. Let’s start by saying hello when we see one another. Small gesture, yes… significant also YES!
I am challenging every adult willing to lead by example to commit to being a mentor to at least one child. There are people that are beginning to work on this and they are going to need our help. My personal goal for my District 4 babies is to ensure they also know, “You matter To Matthews” and I am going to continue to prove it to them every day! Said too often but meant no less, I send my deepest sympathies to the families and everyone affected by this tragedy.
To My District, My Community & My City From My Heart To Yours, if we are going to do it, Northside, Eastside, Westside or Southside, let’s do it … TOGETHER.
I love you, Brandi
the SPECTATOR
Pitch perfect
High school sports are finally back and the Charles
B. Aycock boys soccer team kicked off the fall season with a decisive victory over North Lenoir Monday evening in Pikeville.
Photos by Ken Fine
WEEK Wayne
Debby was a downer
As promised, this week’s edition includes the contents of the Aug. 11 paper, as Tropical Storm Debby impacted our ability to deliver hard copies safely and on time.
Judging by the analytics, many of you received our email about the impact Tropical Storm Debby had on our ability to deliver the Aug. 11 print edition safely and on time — and then, you opted to access the digital Wayne Week via the link we provided.
But for those of you who did not, here is a brief recap of what happened:
First, the storm disrupted our print operation — ensuring that it would be Saturday evening, at the earliest, before we received our papers from Central North Carolina.
Then, after consulting with many friends and subscribers in Wayne County volunteer fire departments and other emergency services organizations, it became clear that the rising river was likely going to litter our routes with hazards from late Saturday through at least Monday.
So, with safety and timely delivery of the paper in mind, we made the decision to “go digital” and include the contents of our Aug. 11 edition in this week’s paper.
We feel that call was consistent with our mission — and is the same decision we will make in the future should another act of God put us in a similar situation.
But while we cannot predict the weather or other extenuating circumstances that could, down the road, force our hand to repeat what just unfolded, we can ensure every single one of you always receives your Wayne Week by Sunday.
If, for whatever reason, we do not have an accurate or preferred email address for you, please drop one of our editors a note.
That way, should a snowstorm or hurricane impact our operation, we will know that, at the very least, you have gotten the digital edition — and an explanation of what happened so you do not feel as though you have been left in the dark.
By this point, we hope you know just how seriously we take customer service.
That is why we can count, on one hand, how many delivery issues we have had in the year-plus
we have been printing Wayne Week — concerns that have always been rectified immediately.
Frankly, this community deserves a newspaper it can count on, and we take a great deal of pride in rewarding your loyalty with the best experience we can offer.
So, yes, Debby was a downer.
And yes, we, like many of you, missed our Sunday morning ritual of flipping through actual pages and getting a little ink on our fingers.
But we hope you will take solace in knowing that we will always give it to you straight — and that missing a week of hard-copy deliveries will always be a last resort after a serious weighing of every option available.
With that, we hope you enjoy this week’s edition. After that? Onward.
Ken and Renee
NEWS + VIEWS
Opioid settlement benefits Wayne County
When it’s all said and done, the local government will have received more than $11 million as a result of landmark deal between state attorneys general and pharmaceutical distributors and manufacturers.
Aportion of a landmark settlement reached between pharmaceutical giants and state attorneys general that was announced in July 2021 has made its way to Wayne County coffers — allowing the local government to invest millions of dollars in the fight against opioid addiction.
And while the total sum — more than $11.3 million — will not be fully realized until the 2038-39 fiscal year, County Commissioners recently approved $1,716,071 in spending for programs the board believes will aid in supporting what Attorney General Josh Stein characterized as “much-needed treatment and recovery services” in the wake of the nation’s opioid epidemic.
The 2021 agreement resolved the claims of state and local governments across the U.S. — including nearly 4,000 that had filed lawsuits against Cardinal, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergen, the nation’s three major pharmaceutical distributors, and Johnson & Johnson, which manufactured and marketed opioids — and will ultimately see a more than $750 million impact in North Carolina.
Here is where Wayne’s recently appropriated $1.7 million is going. The descriptions of services have been taken directly from county documents and have not been edited for spelling or grammar:
• Wayne County Sheriff’s Office, $525,000: The Wayne County Detention Center Substance Misuse Program will provide treatment for incarcerated individuals by connecting them with essential providers, classes, and services essential for maintaining sobriety post-release.
• Wayne County Public Schools, $410,000: WCPS will provide a layered approach to programs, services, and training to encourage early identification and intervention for children or adolescents who may be struggling with problematic use of drugs or mental health conditions. In addition, WCPS will install vape sensors in restrooms and locker rooms to detect the use of THC and other dangerous chemicals or organic products. This will be used in con-
junction with a counseling-based “alternative-to-suspension” cessation program for first-time offenders.
• Wayne Coalition for Addiction and Life Management (CALM), $50,000: Wayne County Coalition for Addiction and Life Management, Inc., a registered non-profit, will provide support to successfully guide individuals and/or families suffering due to substance use disorder through the complex re-
sources needed to achieve holistic recovery. CALM will bridge the service gaps and support healthy, drugfree communities.
• Wayne County Day Reporting Center, $150,000: The Wayne County Day Reporting Center is a Department of Wayne County that offers pretrial release supervision to those awaiting trial. Clients are able to avoid pretrial confinement in the Wayne County Detention Center as long as they comply
OPIOID PAYMENT BREAKDOWN
The following is an 18-year schedule of estimated payments to Wayne County from national opioid settlements. The amounts were provided by the North Carolina Department of Justice:
with the terms of their pretrial supervision. The Center will provide an opportunity to help curb opioid and other drug use in Wayne County by assisting clients with achieving housing stability and drug treatment. With stable housing and drug-free status, participants will have increased employability, resulting in food security and health improvements through adequate insurance coverage.
• Goldsboro Comprehensive Treatment
Center, $50,000: Will provide Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) to underinsured or uninsured residents of Wayne County who would otherwise be unable to start or stay in treatment. ATS specializes in treating individuals diagnosed with Opioid Use Disorder (OUD). The facility offers all three FDA-approved OUD medications, including Methadone, Buprenorphine, Buprenorphine/ Naloxone, Sublocade, and Vivitrol, tailoring treatment to each individual’s recovery needs. ATS will also provide financial assistance to bridge gaps in covering balances when insurance falls short. This support continues until insurance coverage is reinstated or financial status improves, serving as a last resort for funding.
• Hope Center Ministries, $97,988: Hope Center Ministries is a non-profit corporation which provides recovery services to individuals with substance abuse addictions. The organization will hire an employee who will act as a full-time peer support specialist for the program. This employee will ensure the men in the Goldsboro Men’s Center are receiving the best care possible while in the program, including dealing with any major health concerns, placing them with the right Vocational Training Provider once they advance to Phase 2 of the program, and
This settlement will force these drug companies to pay an historic amount of money to bring much-needed treatment and recovery services to North Carolina.
providing access to the education and other resources available in the family life center. In addition, funding will give at least 20 men and women access to the program through scholarships.
• Wayne County Health Department, $50,000: The Wayne County Health Department will provide harm reduction strategies by purchasing and distributing Naloxone kits to key members of the community and support systems while providing the necessary training on using this lifesaving medication.
• Four Day Movement, $150,000: The non-profit corporation Four Day Movement, Inc., through its “PORTAL” program, will provide temporary supportive housing and wraparound services to vulnerable populations in Wayne County, overcoming homelessness and displacement. Included in the vulnerable populations will be clients who want to overcome substance misuse, including opioids, and clients who are re-entering society after incarceration.
• Wayne Community College, $180,000: Wayne Community College will address the needs of recently incarcerated individuals by providing them with vital skills necessary to obtain meaningful employment and financial support for themselves and their families upon release. Wayne Community College will
also provide Peer Support Training classes for individuals who are living in recovery with mental illness and/or substance use disorder and who want to work within the local mental health and substance use disorder service system.
• Hope Restorations, Inc., $111,600: Hope Restorations, Inc. will aid individuals in recovery from addiction and/or incarceration to foster lasting change in the community by providing essential services such as transitional housing, recovery programs, workforce development, and housing restoration projects. The program is centered around providing training and workforce development opportunities for individuals who face significant challenges in securing gainful employment due to a record of substance abuse and/or incarceration.
Stein believes it is important that the money being used for programs like the ones commissioners just agreed to fund is coming from those companies he said “created” and “fueled” the nation’s opioid crisis.
“While no amount of money will ever be enough, this settlement will force these drug companies to pay an historic amount of money to bring much-needed treatment and recovery services to North Carolina communities,” he said. n
John D. Lewis Gaston Lewis
AN SCAPE DESIGN OF GOLDSBORO, INC.
Gurley asks state to investigate Coram
Wayne County Board of Commissioners Chairman Chris Gurley — citing what he fears is the potential for “irreparable harm” to local residents and businesses — has asked State Auditor Jessica Holmes to launch an investigation into Register of Deeds Constance Coram.
In a letter obtained by Wayne Week, Gurley made his case for an intervention by Holmes’ office — specifically what he characterized as the registrar’s “mismanagement of government funds.”
But he did not stop there.
He wrote that since Coram took office in 2020, citizens and county staff have “discovered” the following issues:
• Severe indexing errors, resulting in inaccurate maintenance of Wayne County Land Records.
• Failure to properly record complete documents, leading to “instruments” being recorded without information required by law.
• Failure by the office to properly collect recording fees and excise taxes, resulting in both the N.C. Department of Administration and the N.C. Department of Health and Human Service failing to receive funding owed to the agencies under N.C. General Statutes 161-11.1 and 161-11.2.
• Misuse by Coram of her county-issued purchasing card, resulting in suspension of her purchasing card privileges.
• Inadequate implementation of NCDAVE, leading to mishandling of birth and death certificates.
BY RENEE CAREY
• Various vendors not being paid on time due to untimely processing of outstanding invoices.
• Falsely accusing the county manager and finance staff of removing money from her budget, secretly concealing it, and then spending it without Board of Commissioners approval.
Gurley also told Holmes that Coram “does not understand standard government budgeting practices” and “incorrectly assumes that money has been mismanaged” — despite the fact that the board has directed the Finance Department to spend “hundreds
of hours attempting to train Ms. Coram and her staff on governmental finance practices with no success.”
And, finally, he noted that on July 26, as reported in the Aug. 4 edition of Wayne Week, Coram closed her office “in violation of a standing order from the Board of Comissioners” and North Carolina law.
“The above-described issues have persisted since Ms. Coram took office in 2020,” Gurley wrote. “I would be most appreciative if your office would investigate this matter so that citizens of Wayne County and other non-citizens receive proper services from the Wayne County Register of Deeds and
are assured that government funds are not mismanaged. I am greatly concerned that if these issues remain unchecked, citizens will suffer irreparable harm.”
Gurley’s letter represents a departure from what he said last week, when he seemed to indicate he felt there was nothing that could be done about Coram between now and November, as she is currently running for reelection.
The resolution, he said then, would have to come from Wayne County voters.
“She’s elected just like we are. We have asked several people to do something about it … and nobody will touch it, and I don’t understand why,” Gurley said. “We, as the county commissioners, can’t really do anything at this point. This is a prime example of what happens when people don’t get out and vote. They don’t think that position is that important. It’s probably one of the most important positions there is in this county. It affects everything.”
But in the days since, he has grown more concerned about the potential damage Coram could inflict in the coming months — and should she lose in November, between Election Day and her last day in office.
“At this point, I’m gonna do everything I can think of, because it’s what is right,” Gurley said. “I don’t know if anything will come of (the letter) but we’ve got to try.”
Attempts to reach Holmes have, as of press time, been unsuccessful, but should we hear from the Office of the State Auditor, we will publish what comes out of that conversation in a future edition of the paper.n
Cox sentencing delayed
Former Wayne County Sheriff’s Office Drug Unit Chief and his attorney have asked for a delay in sentencing so they can, if they wish, challenge the pre-sentence investigation report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
BY KEN FINE
Former Wayne County Sheriff’s Office Drug Unit Chief Michael Cox was supposed to be sentenced in federal court at the end of the month after pleading guilty, in March, to two crimes that could carry with them up to 20 years of imprisonment each, more than $1 million in fines, and the seizure of his business, home, and other assets.
But according to court documents obtained by Wayne Week, Cox and his attorneys have asked for more time to potentially challenge the pre-sentence investigation report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office — a move that led to Chief Judge Richard Myers II pushing back the former deputy’s next court appearance to the end of September.
The following reflects what is included in a pre-sentence report, a document that, in theory, helps the judge determine the appropriate sentence:
PART A: THE OFFENSE
Charges and Conviction(s) — This section provides a brief chronological history of the prosecution of the case from the filing of the initial charges to the referral to the probation office for a presentence report.
The Offense Conduct — This section provides all pertinent information regarding the offense to assist the court in understanding the facts of the offense and the elements relevant to application of sentencing guidelines. This section may also include information indicating whether the offense was part of a larger scheme or plan that included other criminal conduct which may be relevant to the determination of the appropriate guideline, the selection of a sentence within the guideline range, and the decision to depart from the guidelines. It further describes the role of the defendant and the conduct of codefendants and other participants during the offense, including planning, preparation for the offense, and
Offense Behavior Not Part of Relevant
Conduct — This section describes criminal behavior that has not been reported in The Offense Conduct section because it is not considered relevant conduct by the guidelines. This section may include offense behavior described in dismissed counts that is not part of relevant conduct for guideline calculations.
PART B: THE DEFENDANT’S CRIMINAL HISTORY
the circumstances leading to the arrest or summons of the defendant.
Custody Status — This section provides relevant details of the defendant’s custody status. The following is included at the very minimum: date of arrest; by whom and where; brief history of appearances before judicial officers and decisions which have been reached; amount of bail and whether made or not; conditions of release and degree to which the defendant has complied.
Victim Impact — While the Victim Impact section is actually part of the offense conduct for which the defendant is responsible, this information is presented under a separate heading to emphasize its importance and the fact that this section includes the impact on all victims of the offense, regardless of whether the information affects guideline application. An assessment of the financial, social, psychological, and medical impact upon any individual victim of the offense is presented, and any financial losses caused by the conduct in the offense are reported.
Adjustment for Obstruction of Justice — This section describes any efforts made by the defendant to impede the investigation or prosecution of this case.
Adjustment for Acceptance of Responsibility — This section contains an assessment of the defendant’s acceptance of responsibility for the offense of conviction.
Offense Level Computation — This section presents the application and calculation of the sentencing guidelines and includes a short synopsis of facts underlying each application, providing tentative findings for the court. For each count, it identifies the applicable guideline and shows the base offense level and any specific offense characteristics or adjustments that modify the base offense level. An explanation indicating the reason for grouping or not grouping counts when a case involves multiple counts. In all cases, the guideline application is displayed, resulting in the total offense level for the case.
Juvenile Adjudications — This section contains a report of the defendant’s record of juvenile adjudications of crime or delinquency and diversionary dispositions based on a finding or admission of guilt. Adjudications are included in chronological other, whether or not they are used in calculating the criminal history category under the Guidelines. The value assigned to each sentence under Chapter IV of the guidelines is also shown.
Criminal Convictions — This section contains a report of the defendant’s adult criminal convictions and those diversions resulting from a guilty plea in a judicial proceeding. It includes a description of the defendant’s prior criminal convictions and dispositions in each case as well as the defendant’s adjustment while incarcerated or under supervision.
Criminal History Computation — This section displays the calculation of the criminal history category and the basis for the calculation.
Pending Charges — This section lists any pending charges against the defendant. This section is omitted if there are no charges.
Other Criminal Conduct — This section reports reliable information regarding other past criminal conduct which may indicate the criminal history category does not adequately reflect the seriousness of the defendant’s past criminal conduct, or the defendant’s likelihood to commit future crimes.
Other Arrests — All other arrests of the defendant are reported in this section in order to provide information to the court regarding the defendant’s contact with law enforcement authorities.
PART C: OFFENDER CHARACTERISTICS
This part sets forth information relative to the defendant’s personal background. Included is information concerning personal and family data, physical condition, mental and emotional health, substance abuse, education and vocational skills, employment and financial condition, including an assessment of the defendant’s ability to make restitution or pay a fine.
PART D: SENTENCING OPTIONS
This part sets forth penalties authorized by statute along with the kinds of sentences available under the guidelines. Included are the statutory and guideline provisions for custody,
impact of the plea agreement, supervised release, probation, fines, restitution, forfeitures, and for drug offenses, denial of benefits. By presenting the statutory and guideline provisions, the parameters of each may be compared. Guideline sentencing options are found in Chapter V of the Guideline Manual.
Impact of the Plea Agreement — This part is included in presentence reports that are prepared when a plea agreement has been tendered to the court. The probation officer assesses the impact of the plea agreement on the guideline sentence by comparing the guidelines applicable under the plea agreement with the guidelines that would apply if the defendant were to plead to all counts.
PART E: FACTORS THAT MAY WARRANT DEPARTURE
This part contains the probation officer’s statement of “any factors that may indicate that a sentence of a different kind or of a different length from the one within the applicable guideline would be more appropriate under all the circumstances.”
PART F: FACTORS THAT MAY WARRANT A SENTENCE OUTSIDE OF THE ADVISORY GUIDELINE SYSTEM
As a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling in U.S. v. Booker (2005), a system was developed in which the sentencing courts are required to consider the sentencing options recommended by the sentencing guidelines, but the judges are free to impose any sentence authorized by Congress. This part contains information identified by the officer as any fact or circumstance addressed in the report that may be relevant to sentencing that was not otherwise considered in the guideline calculations or departure analysis. Since most grounds will have already been considered by the guidelines or policy statements, officers are cautious when identifying these factors.
Addendum to the Presentence Report — In some courts, the presentence report is disclosed to the defendant, counsel for the defendant, and counsel for the Government before it is submitted to the judge. This procedure allows both counsel to communicate with the probation officer to resolve any concerns or objections regarding material information, sentencing classifications, or the sentencing guideline range contained in the presentence report.
Whatever the sentence, Cox will remain a convicted felon two times over, having admitted, as part of a plea agreement, that he indeed conspired to distribute and possess cocaine, methamphetamine, and oxycodone, and conspired with another deputy, former WCSO Maj. Christopher Worth, to defraud the county he once swore to protect via a bid-rigging scheme. Worth, who also pleaded guilty to federal financial crimes, is set to be sentenced at the end of October. n
Rendering of Michael Cox
{ our TAKE }
KEEPING AN EYE ON THE MONEY
We see the consequences of the opioid epidemic all over the county.
You see adults — some younger, some older — who seem frozen on sidewalks and under overpasses, whose countenance and appearance suggest that addiction has consumed and overpowered them.
And those are just the ones out in the open.
There are others — men and women from good families from positive upbringings with good jobs, with potential, who you would never in a million years have thought would be an addict.
But then, they were prescribed painkillers, and their lives were changed forever.
The toll the opioid crisis has taken.
The lives that have been lost.
The tragedies that have claimed lives much too young and ruined futures.
The hopelessness of an addiction that seems impossible to overcome.
That is the cost of the over-prescription of opioids.
Patients trusted that the medication they were prescribed because they were in pain — real pain — was not something that would lead to dependency that would destroy their lives and, in many cases, their families.
And now, opioids are out there among our children.
There are teenagers and younger — and twenty-somethings — who think they won’t be the ones who get hooked.
They think they can walk away from those little plastic bottles whenever they want.
But then, the unthinkable happens.
They get hooked and their usage escalates.
Now, those first small doses they took for kicks are no longer enough.
And when the oxycontin and Percocet get harder to find, they graduate to heroin.
That’s when we lose them.
You know the stories.
We have shared many of them during our coverage of the Tent City fiasco.
But what you might not realize is that those same people who told us how they got hooked — the ones who used to live in the woods beyond the tree line off Royall Avenue — are now shooting up in plain sight.
Their needles litter parking lots at many of the stores we take our children to when it’s time for back-to-school shopping.
Wayne County has the same story as so many places in America. And we share the feelings of hopelessness and not knowing how we can put a dent in the problem — to encourage those caught in the throes of an addiction that is destroying their lives to choose another path.
But then, after years of watching the problem get worse and worse, we finally had someone to hold accountable.
And thanks to a landmark lawsuit, North Carolina is among the many states that has received — and will continue to receive — millions of dollars from the companies that were at the forefront of the opioid crisis and pushed doctors to sell their products as a miracle cure for chronic pain.
Wayne County will, ultimately, receive more than $11 million of that settlement — with nearly $2 million set to be distributed this year to a handful of agencies and public bodies commissioners believe can “make a difference.”
That money is important. If used properly, it could make a real difference and help addicts change their lives.
Or, it could just be another bunch of
with measuring outcomes and realistic and achievable goals that are backed with the experience and expertise to make a significant impact.
We need an organization that is familiar with setting a standard, evaluating a proposal, and holding those who seek money accountable.
And in our view, that organization is the United Way.
Not that Executive Director Sherry Archibald and her team do not have enough to do already, but they could offer some important insight into how to make sure that money gets into the right hands and the county gets the outcomes it so
We need to set up a vetting process — a serious examination of not only the programs that will be receiving these funds, but the people who run them.
checks handed out without a real plan — or a measurement of the effectiveness of the dollars that are being spent.
We know how that works. We have been here before.
Money, our money, has ended up in the hands of, at best, well-meaning agencies with a vision to help, and, at worst, professional grifters who are great at spinning tales of accomplishment and change, but really are only interested in lining their own pockets.
We have no reason to believe that the first round of money awarded to combat the opioid crisis — you can see the list in our News + Views section — is not being spent wisely.
But we feel the need to urge caution here, before the remaining millions are gone forever.
We need to set up a vetting process — a serious examination of not only the programs that will be receiving these funds, but the people who run them.
We cannot afford to just throw money at this problem and hope a solution will stick.
We need an organization that is familiar
We want to see them on a path toward recovery.
And we don’t want more children and teens following in their footsteps — deciding that they will be the ones who “can handle it.”
So, we have to spend this money very, very carefully because it is unlikely we will ever see a windfall like this again.
We have seen what happens when “free” money is not handled properly, when politics and good old boy backscratching get in the way of making the right decision.
We saw it when the COVID funds started flowing.
So, no, there will be no do-over here.
And no, we don’t need any more embarrassments uncovered by the Office of the State Auditor or Attorney General.
That is why we — and you — must ask questions.
We must know who is in charge of every single organization that is going to receive an opioid check from this county — and see a detailed explanation of where every penny is being spent.
Fluff in an application should be a no-go — as, too, should be pie-in-the-sky generalities that are lovely in theory, but have no practical evidence to support their effectiveness.
And this is also not a time to tweak the requirements, either.
These funds should be used to end opioid addiction in this community and to give those already in its grip the chance to restart their lives.
That’s it.
desperately needs.
They can also share data about where money is being spent right now that is working and achieving the end goal we all want — fewer people dying.
Because the truth is, we cannot afford to flail around here.
We cannot spread money around to be “nice” or “popular.”
And no, it does not need to have to meet a quota.
This is not a political prize to be shared with those who know someone or who have perfected the art of the hustle.
We need serious organizations with boots-on-the-ground experience handling opioid addicts and proven track records of getting them off the streets and into new lives.
And if along the way, we get better at keeping drugs off the streets and getting more offenders into rehabilitation programs that wrest them from the grip of drugs and criminal pursuits — well that is even better.
We all want less crime,
We want fewer people wandering around our streets lost and without hope.
Nothing else.
And those who get funds should be required to present regular updates and progress reports — to show outcomes — as well as an exact accounting of how each dollar has been spent.
Yes, we have to watch.
And yes, we reserve the right to call back any funds from any government organization that cannot show proof that they are using them for the purpose for which they were awarded.
And, by the way, we should have the right to audit those organizations’ coffers at any time.
That is the only way we can be certain this “free” money isn’t being used to make someone richer.
The opioid crisis has already destroyed so much. And there are people — and families — that will never be the same because of that damage.
So, we owe it to them to make a change and start to turn the tide.
We owe it to all of them — those who have been on the journey, those who are recovering, and, most importantly, those who weren’t able to hang on. n
Aug. 5, the Goldsboro City Council rejected a chance to settle a lawsuit filed against the city and one of its former department heads in 2022 — opting, instead, to let the legal process play out.
By KEN FINE
On Aug. 5, former Goldsboro City Councilman — and current Wayne County Commissioner — Antonio Williams had reason to believe he might soon be the recipient of a $45,000 settlement that would put an end to a lawsuit he filed against the city and one of its former department heads in 2022.
But when the current council got wind of the proposed deal, the majority of its members adamantly rejected the prospect of paying him anything — opting instead, via a 5-2 vote, to allow the legal process to play out.
The substance of the discussion held inside a Raleigh courtroom that Monday afternoon as part of a “settlement conference” conducted before Magistrate Judge James Gates has been sealed by the court.
The council’s subsequent vote to reject the proposed payout to Williams was conducted in closed session.
But a confidential source with direct knowledge of the fallout from the board’s decision, who also was in the room during the vote, told Wayne Week that the commissioner and his legal team were “shocked” and “angered” by the turn of events — despite the fact that based on the discussion held between council members, “there was never any doubt (Williams) wasn’t going to get a dime.”
What unfolded Monday is the latest development in a case that dates back to at least 2017, when Williams and then-Community Relations Director Shycole Simpson-Carter clashed over Goldsboro’s Summer Youth Employment Initiative.
According to the results of an independent investigation undertaken by the city in 2019 after SimpsonCarter filed a formal complaint against Williams, that’s when the conflict between the two began — because, as investigators concluded, the thencouncilman wanted more control over the Summer Youth Employment Initiative and to have youth workers placed at his business, a request Simpson-Carter perceived as a conflict of interest.
There was never any doubt (Williams) wasn't going to get a dime.
Then, more than a year later, the conflict reached its climax when, at a Sept. 27, 2018, Goldsboro-Wayne Transportation Authority meeting, Williams, according to the investigation report, behaved in an “unacceptable” manner — berating SimpsonCarter after she told the GWTA board she did everything within her power to ensure 10 individuals who had been displaced by Hurricane Floyd had a roof over their heads after flooding associated with the storm left them without shelter.
Williams, according to records released in June 2018, told the board the city only footed the bill for a single night at local hotels — that he, not the government, paid for the lodging.
“We got them in a hotel for one night with WAGES’ help, but I had to pay for these
Williams, on the other hand, supported his version of the events with a receipt for a single room and two receipts from McDonald’s.
A week after the back and forth at the GWTA meeting, Williams submitted a handwritten note demanding SimpsonCarter be fired — alleging she was part of a conspiracy against him.
“I am requesting that Shycole SimpsonCarter’s employment with the City of Goldsboro be terminated based on her intended act to maliciously destroy the reputation of a City Council official and undermine the citizens of the City of Goldsboro,” it read.
Investigators concluded that the letter “could very well be found to be retaliatory.”
“The City Council need not take any particular side in the history of acrimony between Ms. Simpson-Carter and Councilmember Williams in order to justify its action of taking sufficient action now to prevent any future occurrence of the escalated behavior which occurred on September 27 and which has not abated and which could very well be found to be retaliatory towards Ms. Simpson-Carter,” the report reads. “What the City Council should remember is that the facts in this case are clearly sufficient to put the City (at) risk for liability for allowing further allegedly discriminatory or retaliatory behavior to occur.”
And while council members attempted to take steps to address the issue — a process that culminated in a failed July 15, 2020, censure hearing — Simpson-Carter filed a complaint several weeks later with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
She alleged that Williams was guilty of “severe and pervasive” behavior that “amounted to harassment and hostile work environment based on sex,” which she claimed, “adversely impacted (her) job and health.”
individuals’ room and board after they were put back on the street,” a quote attributed to Williams from the meeting reads. “(SimpsonCarter) is lying. I don’t know what receipts she has, but she is lying. The city did not pay for these individuals’ hotel stay on Friday.”
The receipts, however, which were obtained by Wayne Week as part of a records request, seemingly substantiate SimpsonCarter’s assertion that she did, in fact, pay for several of the residents to spend an additional night at Knights Inn using her city procurement card.
And in addition to the receipts, documents obtained from the city include narratives prepared by the then-department head for all 10 individuals — and seemingly vindicate her claim that she followed their cases through.
And Simpson-Carter also said the city “knew” and “took no action” — a reference to the failure, by a 4-3 vote, of the City Council to censure Williams for his conduct.
“As the city yet again did nothing or said nothing as I tried to be professional and swallow the fact that I was not being treated fair or protected as an African-American female based on the city’s … action not to censure Councilman Williams … I still showed up … to do my job under enormous pressure and stress,” she said in her complaint. “It seems like I … have been living in the pit of hell each day that I am being tortured to the brink of death by Lucifer himself.”
Simpson-Carter would ultimately be awarded $25,000 in a settlement for her
Continued on page 30
“alleged compensatory damages, including alleged pain, suffering and emotional distress” — a deal that allowed the city to deny wrongdoing and resulted in the dismissal of the EEOC complaint.
And despite the fact that she would, a little more than a year later, resign her post and Williams, two weeks after that, would be elected to the Wayne County Board of Commissioners, the saga did not end in the fall of 2020, as Williams filed his own grievance two years later.
In court documents filed Sept. 20, 2022, Williams made a staggering number of claims against Simpson-Carter and the Goldsboro city government — and asked for a minimum of $125,000 in damages for allegations including “defamation,” “abuse of process,” and “malicious prosecution.”
He said the city and Simpson-Carter “acted in concert” to “publicly humiliate” him and “undermine his integrity.”
He alleged he suffered “severe emotional distress and mental anguish.”
And he accused them of discriminating against him “on the basis of his race” — despite the fact that Simpson-Carter is also black.
But he didn’t stop there.
The commissioner also said he has lost — “and may continue to lose” — what he characterized as “substantial wages, future
The majority of the council made it abundantly clear that there was no way they were going to set the precedent of paying off somebody they believe filed a frivilous lawsuit.
earnings, and the enjoyment of life.”
The city and Simpson-Carter, in their official response, denied the vast majority of Williams’ claims through their attorney.
And they claimed that the former councilman’s pursuit of punitive damages violates the Fifth and Fourteen Amendments to the Constitution.
They denied that Williams’ rights were violated “in any way” and also argued that
“each purported case of action alleged” was barred “in whole or in part by the applicable statute of limitations.”
And they pleaded “privilege” as an affirmative defense to all his “causes of action premised on defamation, slander, or libel.”
In January, attorneys for the city and Simpson-Carter went a step further, asking the judge, via a “Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgement,” to forgo a jury trial
and instead dismiss the grievance — alleging, again, that there were “no genuine issues of material fact” presented by Williams and his claims were “time-barred.”
But in late June, United States Magistrate Judge Brian Meyers, ordered the parties to participate in the settlement conference in an attempt to “ensure that any potential for settlement of this case is explored to the fullest extent possible.”
Now that the City Council has voted against allowing its attorneys to settle with Williams, several scenarios are possible.
The judge could rule on the city’s request for a summary judgement and, potentially, throw out the lawsuit.
He could remove the case from federal jurisdiction and send it back to the state for a resolution.
And he could also set a schedule for a potential jury trial.
But is there another shot at a pre-trial resolution?
“Not a chance,” the city source told Wayne Week . “The majority of the council made it abundantly clear that there was no way they were going to set the precedent of paying off somebody they believe filed a frivolous lawsuit.”
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