Wayne Week — Aug. 4, 2024

N E W OL D NORT H M E DI A PR E SE N T S A W E E K LY N E WS M AGA Z I N E

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Wayne County Register of Deeds Constance Coram broke the law July 26 — declaring, to the UNC School of Government, that she was going on strike and closing her office, a violation of North Carolina General Statute.

By KEN FINE and RENEE CAREY p. 12

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CONTENTS 4 Dog trainer charged with abuse AUGUST 4, 2024 Volume 1, Issue 51

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EDITORIAL EDITOR Ken Fine EDITOR Renee Carey DESIGN DIRECTOR Shan Stumpf PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR Casey Mozingo

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Matthew Neal, a former Rosewood High School baseball standout, was charged with nine felonies and two misdemeanors for his alleged abuse of the dogs under his care at his business, East Carolina Retrievers — a company that served several Wayne County families.

7 Businesses put on notice by city

The Goldsboro City Council has vowed to put an end to gun violence and one of the steps the board is taking is going after local businesses that, in some cases, turn a blind eye to armed gang members who have been selling drugs in front of their storefronts in broad daylight .

12 Cover story

Wayne County Register of Deeds Constance Coram broke the law July 26 by admittedly going on strike and closing her office because she remains at odds with the Board of Commissioners — an action the UNC School of Government warned her was illegal.

18 Trial date set in WCDS lawsuit

Unless a deal is reached — or a judge decides to rule on Wayne Country Day's motion to dismiss — the school and its digruntled neighbor will meet in court in mid-November.

20 Spectator

Summer break is quickly coming to an end, so The Goldsboro Housing Authority held a "Back to School" event at Herman Park Wednesday, as only a few weeks remain before students return to classrooms across Wayne County.

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BY SHAN STUMPF

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NEWS +VIEWS

Former Wayne County baseball standout arrested

Former Rosewood High School baseball star Matthew Neal, 32, was arrested and charged with nine counts of felony animal cruelty after a video that depicts graphic dog abuse attributed to his retriever training business went viral on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram.

BY KEN FINE

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man in a black hooded sweatshirt repeatedly whips — with the object in his right hand — the face of a labrador retriever.

He uses a closed fist and throws punches.

Moments later, he grabs the dog by the neck, lifts it some six feet into the air, and slams it onto the ground.

The scene was recorded, but it was not the only video of the man that went viral on social media last week.

In another, he relentlessly whips another dog as it yelps — cries so loud that they drown out the high-pitched whistle he is blowing over and over again.

And now, thanks to Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, a business owned by former Rosewood High School baseball standout Matthew Neal — a hunting dog training operation that has served dozens of Wayne County families — is under investigation by the Lenoir County Sheriff ’s Office and Neal has been charged with nine counts of felony cruelty to animals.

Several local residents told Wayne Week they were horrified by what they say are videos of an East Carolina Retrievers trainer abusing dogs under his care.

One of them even pulled their puppy from the ECR program before Neal was arrested because they no longer wanted to be “associated” with what are now nearly a dozen abuse charges against Neal himself.

Within hours of the videos being published, Lenoir County Sheriff Jackie Rogers pledged accountability — releasing a lengthy statement in response to a flood of emotional pleas from the public.

“There has been a disturbing video depicting the abuse of an animal circulating on social media.

Lenoir County Sheriff Jackie Rogers, Lenoir County Health Department Director Pamela Brown and Lenoir County Animal Control are aware of this video and the departments are conducting intensive investigations,” the statement reads. “The Lenoir County Sheriff ’s Office and Lenoir County

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Animal Control have conducted several interviews involving the incident. However, we are asking for the public’s help. Anyone with firsthand knowledge (videos, pictures or eyewitnesses to the abuse) is asked to contact the LCSO at 252-559-6118.”

And he assured the public that if his department could prove ECR abused dogs, justice would, he said, be served.

“While I am sheriff, I can assure the residents of Lenoir County that everyone, regardless of income level, race, social status or any other factor will be held accountable for their crimes,” he said. “I have proven in my tenure as sheriff that no one is above the law in Lenoir County.”

He proved it again Tuesday afternoon.

At 12:30 p.m., the LCSO converged on Neal’s Pink Hill home.

They arrested the former Wayne County baseball standout — charging him with nine felony counts of cruelty to animals and two misdemeanors — and “confiscated” the 11 dogs on the property.

“They will be housed in a safe location,” Rogers said.

In cases like this one, North Carolina General Statute opens the door for either misdemeanor or felony charges.

According to G.S. 14-360, if any person “intentionally” wounds, injures, torments, or kills “any animal,” they are guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

But if they “maliciously torture” or “cruelly beat” an animal, it rises to a Class H felony, which carries a potential prison sentence of up to 20 months.

Since the videos were posted, the company’s website has been deactivated — the website homepage is now simply a white screen with the words “Under Maintenance” appearing on the top left corner — and attempts to secure comment from Neal were unsuccessful by press time.

But Rogers lauded those who ensured Neal’s alleged behavior was made public — thanking “the citizens and the incredible residents who have come forward and made statements” to make the arrest possible. n

Matthew Neal, owner of East Carolina Retrievers.

PHOTO BY PEYTON KONIG

THE ALLEGED INCIDENTS According to the arrest warrant, the following are among the incidents for which Matthew Neal was investigated and provide the basis for the nine counts of felony animal abuse levied against him: • Using a shock collar on Maggie, a yellow lab, “until her eyes were bloodshot” • Punching, “with his hands,” and holding down the shock collar remote “for an unreasonable amount of time” on a lab named Tucker • Hitting a puppy with a PVC “heeling stick” 52 times • Choking a yellow lab • Shocking a black lab until she “vomited” • Beating a black lab named Tucker • Beating a black lab named BoBo • Dragging and beating a shorthair pointer named Bullet

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Goldsboro confronts businesses associated with crime Two local convenience stores have been put on notice by Mayor Charles Gaylor and the Goldsboro Police Department.

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t’s pushing 100 degrees on a July afternoon and nearly a dozen young men stand outside a gas station on Slocumb Street.

Some are smoking marijuana.

Many have firearms tucked underneath their shirts.

A few openly complete drug transactions.

It’s broad daylight, but they don’t seem overly concerned as cars stop at the red light and then, roll by.

Back in October, during a ride-along with Goldsboro Police officer Justin Whitfield, he told Wayne Week that this same scene has been playing out at that same location for as long as he can remember.

“They stand up here and sell drugs all day, pretty much. You saw how many were out here.

What am I gonna do?” Whitfield said. “Me by myself, I can’t jump out on 10 guys standing at the gas station selling drugs because with drugs comes guns more than likely. So, I’m not risking my life to go get some dope off the corner by myself. And they know that.”

BY KEN FINE But now, as the GPD begins to fill its making a change.

But those who ignore the warning delivered depleted ranks — something made possible after the City Council approved robust salary by City Hall risk penalties — up to and increases for local lawmen — leaders are including the shuttering of their businesses.

“Anything that we do with nuisance convinced a change is coming.

And to ensure it does, they are not simply abatement is to try and make the communities safer, relying on officers to more livable, and make arrests. more desirable. I Letters have would always prefer been sent by Mayor Anything that we do with that a business be Charles Gaylor to that gas station and nusiance abatement is to try above board and successful and be another convenience to make the community safer able to be an asset store that has long to the community,” been associated with Gaylor said. “But criminal behavior. if we see where It is, the mayor a business is not said, an opportunity for the businesses to take a stand against able to be those things, I think we have an those breaking the law in their parking lots obligation to let them know. Now, help is here … but you’re going to offer that once and, sometimes, inside their establishments. or twice and those that are taking you up And there’s a catch.

The city, Gaylor said, will do everything on that offer, you’re obviously more flexible it can to assist those who are committed to with. Those that turn a blind eye to — or

basically ball up — the letter and throw it away, I don’t think that they are gonna get too many chances.”

It starts with a discussion with GPD Chief Mike West who looks at “the data” and determines whether a business is part of the problem.

Then, this letter is sent to the owner of the establishment in question: “The Goldsboro Police Department has expressed concerns regarding activities on this property. Either this property is having recurring calls for service from the Police within a relatively small window of time, or GPD has strong reason to believe illegal activity is occurring often on the property.

Thus, the community needs our immediate help. My request to you is that you immediately take measurable steps to clean up any problems at this property. Let’s get this property back to being a property that uplifts the neighborhood.

Often, these problems require assistance Continued on page 8

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Continued from page 7

from law enforcement. I assure you we have professionals ready to assist. But it has to start with your actions, and your request.

In closing, please know that we are serious about cleaning up this property and the city as a whole. This property is currently being monitored by my office, code enforcement, and law enforcement. As such, you will get multiple letters about the property as these departments follow their processes. Let’s work together to enable you to handle this situation yourself and avoid any further actions by the City.

Please know if we can help you in any way, we are happy to do so if you will contact us.

You can reach Police Chief Mike West at 919-580-4231. Thank you in advance for your assistance and immediate attention regarding this matter.”

Since the two letters were sent, the owners of the businesses who received them

have not reached out to West or Gaylor, but the mayor said he has heard “from the community” that measures are being taken to try to change the behavior of those committing crimes on the properties.

And he credits the community for taking a stand — and hopes it will continue to as he and local police officers work to thwart what has become escalating gang and gun violence threats inside the city limits.

“It does not matter to me the demographics of your neighborhood or the net worth of your neighborhood. You ought to be able to sleep in your home without worrying about bullets flying through your bedroom. That is the goal,” Gaylor said.

“The community around us deserves praise because the community around us has said, ‘We’ve had enough. This is not the quality of life that we want. This is not the community that we want. And we deserve and we demand better.’”n

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{ our TAKE }

Coram's games are getting old

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nother day, another embarrassment inside the Wayne County Courthouse.

We really should expect it by now.

Unfortunately, we are partially responsible for it.

But don’t worry, we can fix the problem.

More on that later.

For now, let’s unwrap the disaster that is Register of Deeds Constance Coram.

We’ll try to keep it short and sweet, but trust us, we could fill multiple newspapers with the receipts.

From a stunning experience gap to creating such a disorganized and unresponsive mess that residents, also known as the taxpayers who fund her office, had to leave the county to get such basics as marriage licenses and death certificates — and take the revenue from fees with them to Johnston County, by the way — because of the dysfunction.

The living were listed as dead. (Yes. That really happened.)

Records, hundreds of them, were improperly filed.

Employees left because of the chaos.

And we won’t even talk about the chilling effect the inability to consistently rely on getting necessary documents from a county office had on everything from real estate transactions to settling estates.

It was bad — so bad, in fact, that the county commissioners had to remind Coram, who made a unilateral decision to close the office 10

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at random times, that she was statutorily obligated to keep the doors open to the public.

And that’s not all.

Coram also put the county in jeopardy financially by not meeting state reporting deadlines.

And then, there is the little matter of the Register of Deeds office budget, which was spent way before the end of the fiscal year, causing Coram to make an embarrassing appearance at a county commissioners meeting demanding more money.

There were questions, of course — about bizarre expenses and employees being paid with Cash App. It was so odd that Coram got her county procurement card taken away. That’s what happens when you spend taxpayers’ money in ways that are outside of the rules.

So, there have been all kinds of questions — and some significant demands for answers.

But when those questions came, the next step, predictably, was the claim — in the form of a lawsuit — that Coram was being questioned, and her demands that money be added to her budget rejected, because she was black.

Racism, she said.

Prejudice on the part of the county commissioners — a plot to ensure she failed.

And there you have it.

No accountability.

No responsibility.

Excuses.

Luckily, the judge didn’t buy it, and the

lawsuit was thrown into the garbage where it belongs.

But before we get to the latest installment of the Coram chronicles, we need to address this elephant in the room.

The reason questions are being raised about Coram’s fitness for office is because she is not fit for office.

She never has been.

She does not have the necessary experience — despite repeated demands for training on how to do a job she told voters she was qualified to do from Day One. She has not been responsible with the money allocated to her to run the office — and even when the commissioners capitulated, which was a big mistake on their part, to her claims she deserved more money and needed more funds to hire better staff, she has still been unable to live within her budget.

Coram played the race card to excuse away her inability to adequately manage the Register of Deeds Office.

And because too many times over the last few years too many people have walked on eggshells rather than risk being called “racist,” she remains in office.

You see, District Attorney Matthew Delbridge could have handled this mess years ago.

He, and only he, had the authority and the evidence to remove her under General Statute Chapter 161.

But he did nothing — for the same reason

he ignored the Goldsboro Police Department’s repeated Tent City investigations.

And look where it’s gotten us.

We can’t believe we have to say this, but not being fit for an office does not have a color. All you have to do is look around a little bit to be sure of that.

If there is a public servant or officeholder who cannot do a job, there are no excuses that can sweep that away and make it alright.

There are many people of color in this community who strive to be the best and do a tremendous job of doing just that.

They have made this community a better place — sometimes in the face of very long odds, and real challenges like prejudice and times of strife and struggle.

They are heroes and they are role models not because of the color of their skin, but because they are people of character and commitment and achievement.

We need more leaders like that.

But what we don’t need is another bad actor who pulls the race card every time they back themselves into a corner.

Here’s why.

When we give into that nonsense, people like Coram are empowered to continue their abhorrent behavior.

Need proof?

This past week, Coram decided that she would announce to the county that the Register of Deeds Office would remain closed until “further notice.”

What she meant — we know because she spelled it out in an email sent to the UNC School of Government — was until she was given the money she claims the county manager “stole” from her.

In other words, she was going to hold the office that is responsible for county recordkeeping — and for documents that are critical to some of life’s most important moments — hostage until she got what she wanted.

Like a petulant child.

You can only imagine what that would have done to those who needed a marriage license for an impending wedding or the stress and unnecessary worry it would have inflicted upon grieving loved ones struggling to get a death certificate.

And, if you have sold or bought a house, you know how precarious deal deadlines are these days. A delay could mean a missed opportunity and because Coram shut that office down, several closings did not happen on schedule.

But your Register of Deeds did not care about all that.

She just wanted her way — and threatening the county was the way she decided to try to get it.

Unfortunately for her, and fortunately for us, the county commissioners set the hours of the county offices, including Coram’s.

So, by closing the doors, she broke the law, which the School of Government advised her of in a tersely worded letter you will see in our cover story.

Several hours later, Coram had to reopen the doors.

But this story should not end there.

No way.

But to ensure it doesn’t, there has to be a pretty significant shift in the courthouse and around the county — the same kind of shift that has been required in several places where voters have held officeholders accountable.

We have to see a little bit more courage — OK, a lot more — because we can no longer avoid doing the hard stuff because we are worried about what name someone is going to call us or the votes we might or might not lose.

So, we will make it easy and rip off the Band-Aid. Coram is not qualified for the office she holds.

Period.

She is an embarrassment to the county and a poser without the skills necessary to perform even the simple task of balancing a budget and meeting its requirements.

There are too many leaders in this county who also seem to have that problem — and/or the arrogance to believe that they don’t have to pay attention to the voters who elected them.

But, thank goodness, there are even more who understand that with an election to an office, and a promise to voters, you have to do what is right — and to be accountable.

So, yes, it is time to stand up and do whatever it takes to stop the madness in the Register of Deeds office.

But don’t think we, the voters, are off the hook.

We have to summon up a little courage, too, because we cannot sit back and let someone else determine our future.

We cannot afford to let another election pass without casting our ballots — or knowing whom we are putting in charge of our county.

Bad votes have consequences. We have seen that over and over again.

And lest you think that there is nowhere else that we need to take this advice, keep this in mind.

We got into trouble in Wayne County Public Schools because of whom we put in charge. Some of them are still there.

We had chaos on the City Council because of whom we put in charge. See the difference a few changes made there?

We have a Pikeville mayor who seems to think he was anointed instead of elected, and a sheriff who was in charge as two of his top lieutenants ran an illegal big-rigging operation — and his Drug Unit chief decided to work with, and protect, known drug dealers.

We deserve better. We do.

But we have to make it happen.

And even after we choose our set of leaders in upcoming elections, we have to do something else even more important.

We have to hold anyone who raises his or her hand and swears to care for this community accountable.

That means ousting those who sit back and do the easy thing, the less-stressful thing, rather than what is right for this county.

And, more importantly, we will see who tries to bully their neighbors into being silent — who is using his or her position to “punish” those who disagree with them or who support those who do.

Election to an office is not a coronation — and using taxpayers’ funds as a punishment and political bludgeon, while lining your own nest, is not acceptable.

And we aren’t going to sit back and watch while it happens.

Right is right and wrong is wrong.

And it is time for those who believe that — those who really are committed to this community’s best interest and not to the power and their egos — to be the voice that holds their colleagues and fellow officeholders and bureaucrats accountable.

So, Coram is a concern that needs to be addressed — immediately.

We are watching to see who steps up and who doesn’t.

But there are many others who are just as bad for Wayne County.

And we refuse to be silent.

There is just too much at stake.

Our hope is that you will join us.n

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Wayne County Register of Deeds Constance Coram broke the law July 26 — declaring, to the UNC School of Government, that she was going on strike and closing her office, a violation of North Carolina General Statute.

By KEN FINE and RENEE CAREY

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fter failing twice to compel a judge to side with her in a years-long dispute with county commissioners and the County Manager’s Office, Wayne County Register of Deeds Constance Coram went on strike July 26 — declaring, in an email sent to the UNC School of Government, that she “took a stand” by closing the ROD office “until further notice.”

But after being notified that her actions were illegal, she reversed course that afternoon — a move that, while it allowed local residents to, again, have access to critical documents like wedding, birth, and death certificates, does not change the fact that she violated North Carolina General Statute.

According to G.S. 95-98.1, public employees are prohibited from going on strike.

“Strikes by public employees are hereby declared illegal and against the public policy of this State,” the statute reads. “No person holding a position either full- or part-time by appointment or employment with the State of North Carolina or in any county, city, town, or other political subdivision of the State of North Carolina, or in any agency of any of them, shall willfully participate in a strike by public employees.”

Coram led one.

And in an email obtained by Wayne Week via a records request, she told School of Government Professor Charles Szypszak why.

“I am writing to you to let you know I have closed down the Office of Wayne County Register of Deeds until further notice,” she wrote that Friday at 9:22 a.m. “I have been to the Commissioners letting them know my concerns and I have been ignored. There is over $100,000.00 that I know of that is missing from my budget. I have no idea how much more may be missing. I have proof that the County is using funding from my office to support the County Manager’s Office. I have been lied to by both the Budget Director and the Finance Director. I have them both on tape stating lies to me. I took a stand, please advise.”

Less than an hour later, Szypszak, an Albert Coates Distinguished Professor of Public Law and Government, warned her that she was making a mistake and advised her as to her “responsibility to the public.”

“I know of no legal authority for you to close the office,” he wrote.

But he did advise her to seek legal counsel should she feel there is “malfeasance in the county’s handling of register of deeds funds.”

That road, though, has not been successful for Coram to date.

In fact, two lawsuits she has filed against the county — and its commissioners — since she took office have been dismissed.

The first, which she filed more than a year ago, was, as out-of-town Superior Court Judge Timothy Wilson put it, problematic.

Here is the background: It started Feb. 14, 2023.

On that day, Coram called Superior Court Judge William Bland, a man she referred to, in open court, as “my dear friend.”

Bland wrote, in a Notice of Recusal from the case filed several months later, that the Valentine’s Day phone call was “relatively brief ” and contained “no substantive action.”

The judge added that he told Coram he could not advise her legally, but assured her that “if the matter came before me, I would work to address (it) fairly.”

Three days after the phone call, Coram drafted a letter to Bland — a sprawling document that alleged she had been “wrongfully treated” due to “the color of my skin,” and urged “the courts to investigate this matter.”

But before the judge had a chance to respond, Coram filed a formal complaint with the court.

In the letter to Bland was what would ultimately become the basis for the lawsuit.

It included: • Coram claimed the Board of Commissioners reduced the Register of Deeds salary before the November 2020 election in anticipation of her victory in the race. They did so, she alleged, because she

EMAILS: CORAM ADMITTED TO BREAKING THE LAW

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Continued from page 13

is black, but the county has argued that the scaled ROD salary is consistent with how it pays all employees — according to experience.

Years and years of experience, they say, is why Coram’s predecessor, Judy Denning Harrison, received more money. In other words, race was not a factor.

• Coram said the Register of Deeds Office was the lowest paid department in the county, and that some managers are paid more than she is as an elected officeholder.

She also defended her record as Register of Deeds, boasting that she has “done more for this department in two years than has been done in over 40 years.” Coram claimed she is trying to do her job, but that “it is the former county manager, the current finance director and the county commissioners who are restricting me from performing my duties to the community.”

• Coram said that she has had her procurement card spending limit reduced from $2,000 to $1,000, and that decisions are made by the commissioners regarding the operation of her department without consulting her. She also said she has no access to her budget, which she says is managed by the county. In November 2021, the county suspended Coram’s procurement card for 60 days after then-Finance Director Allison

This is a prime example of what happens when people don't get out and vote.

Speight discovered “questionable purchases” by the registrar. In an email sent to Coram that August, Speight had to remind Coram that “you are never to use your county p-card as an extension of your personal card or personal finance in any manner whatsoever.”

Speight also highlighted potential red flag charges, including a $221 cash app payment to one of her employees.

• Coram also cited multiple attempts to talk to the commissioners and to consult outside parties about alleged interference by the board. She said that she had consulted with and retained an attorney to help her resolve the matter, but that the firm’s representation was unsatisfactory. “I have entrusted an attorney who I will be taking to the Bar Association and

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the Attorney General’s office. This firm took $8,000 from me, after they assured me (that) my civil rights had been violated. They were ready to rock and roll, then I receive a notice that they could not assist me in my matter.”

Wilson tossed the lawsuit without prejudice for several reasons, including the fact that Coram showed up to the hearing without an attorney — and because unlike a typical lawsuit that seeks monetary damages, hers was, instead, a plea for the court to investigate what she labeled as the discriminatory practices of the Board of Commissioners.

Less than four months later, Coram filed another lawsuit — this time in federal court, alleging the commissioners had committed “tortious acts” against her

because she is a black woman.

In the complaint, which was filed Aug. 3 by Civil Rights attorney Alan McSurely, she demanded two sets of compensatory damages — each “in excess of $25,000 — and asked the court to order the commissioners to enroll “all managerial employees in appropriate anti-racism courses provided by the U.S. Department of Justice and the UNC School of Government.

Coram also asked that the county provide her with a year of travel pay to work with a veteran Register of Deeds and the School of Government on “an anti-racism curriculum for North Carolina counties who have similar histories of slavery and Jim Crow.”

The following allegations were among the allegations she made in the filing: • She is the first African American woman elected to this “historic position that was selffunded during Wayne County’s long night of chattel slavery and Jim Crow.”

• The Wayne County government and its agents have prevented Coram from being assigned “the most experienced professional and experienced Assistant Register of Deeds who, according to applicable N.C. General Statutes are to provide her mentoring.”

• Coram wants to “set up offices at Continued on page 16

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Wayne

If the Goldsboro City Council adopts the 2024-25 budget recommended by Interim City Manager Matthew Livington, local residents will be forced to absorb a 15-cent property tax increase and a 7-percent water and sewer rate hike, as leaders look for a way to finance police and fire raises.

WEEK

MIND GA M ES

?

A unanimous decision to move Goldsboro High School to a new building has drawn the ire of community leaders, former students, and teachers who fear the school will soon close for good.

SPECIES? ENDANGERED

Dozens have graduated from the University of Mount Olive’s Master's in Counseling Psychology program, but because it is still not accredited, most are unable to find employment as therapists in North Carolina.

BY KEN FINE p. 1 4

Budget Buffet

BY KEN FINE

/ p. 14

BY K E N F I N E / p. 12

NEWS: Court documents filed last week seem to indicate former WCSO deputy has reached a plea deal . p.6

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F E BU R A RY 18, 2024

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N E W OL D NORT H M E DI A PR E SE N T S A W E E K LY N E WS M AGA Z I N E

ALSO INSIDE

Wayne

Coram’s lawsuit thrown out / p. 4

WEEK

NEWS Salmon out as City Manager / p. 8

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CONTENT WARNING

Some of the information in our cover story could be perceived as graphic in nature and could be upsetting to some readers, including those who might have experienced abuse or sexual assault.

WEEK

Local leaders say it’s time to fight back after community was “blindsided” by news of cuts coming to 4th Fighter Wing. / by KEN FINE p. 16

DIGITAL

M AY 12, 2024

THE PROBLEM WITHIN

Two Wayne County public school teachers have been charged with taking indecent liberties with students since Gov. Roy Cooper signed a harsher set of penalties for the crime into law in late 2023.

But those two individuals are only part of a problem the local education community has been dealing with for the last several years.

BY KEN FINE p.12

New Old North Media 219 North John Street Goldsboro, NC 27530

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Continued from page 14

churches of color, where Wayne County citizens of color might feel more comfortable to avail themselves of all the services provided by the Recorder of Deeds.”

• Coram claims she is in the “best position to know when people are discriminating against her” and said the “intolerable conditions” the commissioners have subjected her to were clearly discriminatory.

• Coram has “suffered extreme emotional distress, causing her to seek professional help” and has “lost trust in many people she has known and worked with.”

• Her lawsuit alleges, “intentional infliction of emotional distress.”

• Coram said the fact that she ran for elected office three times set an example for “other blacks to get engaged in the electoral system” and that the county government “has punished her for winning this traditional white male position” — that “this cause of action meets the framework of Section 2 of the Enforcement Act of 1871 (Ku Klux Klan Act 42 USC sect 1985(3), which prohibits two or more persons from conspiring to use ‘force, intimidation, or threat’ to deprive a person of equal protection, to hinder state officials in securing equal protection for others, or to prevent voters from engaging in lawful activity related to voting in federal elections.”

But U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle dismissed that lawsuit, too, writing that Coram’s complaint “contains only conclusory allegations which fail to plausibly allege that any named defendant is liable for any misconduct.”

And since that February ruling, the registrar has decided to air out her grievances in other venues, including on social media.

None of her statements, however, have addressed issues that began long before her first day in office.

Before she was elected, she published several incendiary social media posts about the community — one that called Goldsboro a “red neck, Jim Crow, kind of city,” one that characterized downtown as an area “that is not doing much of anything,” and another that referred to white leaders as “massa” and their black supporters as “field workers.”

And she ran for office on the promise that she had the skills and experience necessary to do the job, but in the nearly four years since she was elected to the post, despite hundreds of hours of training paid for by the county, the community has expressed outrage at how their business is being conducted.

There was the alleged misuse of county funds noted by Speight.

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I guess the biggest issue that I've got with it is how much it's hurting our citizens. ...

She couldn't care less and it's aggravating.

And in the same month during which the Finance Department recommended the revocation of her procurement card, a formal complaint was filed alleging Coram violated North Carolina General Statute.

The complaint, which called for her removal from office and was filed with local and state officeholders, alleged that the office of the Register of Deeds as managed

by Coram had fallen dangerously behind in its duties, with a backlog of more than 3,000 records more than 58 days in arrears.

That December, then-County Manager Craig Honeycutt asked the commissioners to approve new procedures for how the ROD office handled its finances — mainly, ensuring the county’s Finance Department provided oversight and took a more handson role within Coram’s office.

All the while, erratic hours, random, unannounced closures — occurrences that resulted in the commissioners sending Coram a letter reminding her that her office was obligated to keep normal business hours — and new requirements put into place by Coram for local residents to access ROD services, resulted in many Wayne County residents heading to adjoining Johnston County for marriage licenses, birth certificates, and death certificates.

There was such a dramatic influx of business that the Johnston County ROD hired additional staff. And with each transaction that occurred across the county line, Wayne coffers lost money.

To date, county officials say it is safe to assume they have lost tens of thousands of dollars in revenue to their neighbors to the west.

Those residents who opted to keep doing business at the Wayne County Courthouse reported not only poor service, but mistakes and costly delays.

A local attorney even notified the

commissioners that he had to contact Coram when her office listed several of his living clients as dead.

Privately, everyone from real estate agents and funeral home directors to board members and county staffers have expressed outrage.

And Friday’s “stunt,” as one local real estate agent put it, “cost us the ability to close on a house.”

“Before you can get the keys to your house, that deed has to be filed with the Register of Deeds Office,” they said. “When (Coram) randomly closes the office like this, we have clients, some of them Air Force families, who have to wait days and days to move into their new homes. Think about that. If this happened on a Friday, they now have to pay for hotels for the weekend because they weren’t able to get their keys and get the purchase of their home completed. And we can’t go to Johnston County. Those deeds have to be filed in the county in which that home is located.”

Because North Carolina does not have a recall election process — and because Coram is an elected official — removing her would require District Attorney Matthew Delbridge to prosecute her for her alleged failure to perform her duties and/or Friday’s violation of General Statute.

To date, Delbridge has acknowledged that he has received the complaints, but no action has been taken by his office.

Commission Chairman Chris Gurley called that fact both frustrating and disappointing.

“It’s impacting the citizens of Wayne County,” he said. “I guess the biggest issue that I’ve got with it is how much it’s hurting our citizens. If you had to buy a house, you couldn’t close. If you had to sell a house, you couldn’t get the money. If you had a death, you’ve got to have death certificates to get life insurance stuff and try to move things forward. She couldn’t care less and it’s aggravating. She’s trying her best to just play havoc on that office.”

But he noted that Coram is currently running for re-election and her actions make it more important than ever for voters to educate themselves on the many issues that have unfolded inside the Register of Deeds Office since she was elected in 2020.

“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 effects everything.” n

★ All Wayne County residents vote for the At-Large Candidate!

FOR BOARD OF EDUCATION AT-L ARGE No candidate or candidate’s committee is responsible for the content of this advertisement. Paid for by Mark and Lauren Metzler. newoldnorth.com

. Wayne WEEK . 17

SPORTS +REC TRIAL DATE SET IN HOMERUN BALL LAWSUIT The judge still has the option to throw out the grievance, but should that not happen, Wayne Country Day and the school’s disgruntled neighbor are expected to appear in court in November.

BY RENEE CAREY

A

mid-November trial date has been set in a lawsuit filed by a retired Army brigadier general who claims that homerun balls hit by the Wayne Country Day baseball team during games and practice repeatedly damaged his property — and triggered combat-induced post-traumatic stress disorder.

But court officials said it is still possible that next month, after all pre-trial motions have been submitted, the judge will rule on the school’s request for dismissal.

The lawsuit, which cost the Chargers the opportunity to take to their home field during the team’s run to a state title this spring, was filed Aug. 9, 2023.

Here is the background: Ralph Griffin, whose home is located on a lot beyond WCPS’ baseball diamond’s outfield, filed a lawsuit against the school and asked for five different sets of damages “in excess of $25,000.”

The grievance, which was obtained by Wayne Week, alleges the following: Griffin and his wife own a home located at 411 Tryon Drive — property that “shares a boundary” with WCDS — and at the time they purchased the property, there was a “mature line of trees” along the boundary. But the trees had to be removed “in order to accommodate drainage equipment necessary for the building permitting process in order to construct the Griffin’s home.”

And with the trees gone, baseballs hit during the Chargers’ practices and games “regularly and repeatedly cross over the property boundary,” and have “caused and continue to cause property damage to the Griffin’s home and property.”

The lawsuit also alleges that Griffin, having served in the Army for nearly 40 years, developed post-traumatic stress disorder, a condition that has been exacerbated by the stress caused by his issues with the WCDS baseball team — that since 2018, when balls land in his yard and “collide with his house,” the veteran “begins to experience increased symptoms and interruptions from his PTSD,” including “disrupted sleep,

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restlessness, increased fear, nightmares, and traumatic flashbacks to servicerelated memories of explosions.”

His desired resolution to the matter is as follows: • The first claim for relief is for what the lawsuit alleges is “Trespass to Real Property.”

Griffin is seeking damages in the amount of “in excess of $25,000.”

• The second claim for relief is for what the lawsuit alleges is “Negligence.” Griffin is seeking damages in the amount of “in excess of $25,000.”

• The third claim for relief is for what the lawsuit alleges is “Negligent Infliction

of Severe Emotional Distress.” Griffin is seeking damages in the amount of “in excess of $25,000.”

• The fourth claim for relief is for what the lawsuit alleges is “Intentional Infliction of Severe Emotional Distress.” Griffin is seeking damages in the amount of “in excess of $25,000.”

• The fifth claim for relief asks for a “Permanent Injunction.” Griffin has asked for a jury trial, damages in the amount of “in excess of $25,000,” and a restraining order that could prevent the Wayne Country Day baseball team from “causing trespass to (the Griffin’s) property from baseball hits from (WCDS) onto (the Griffin’s) property.”

Nearly three months later, the school, through its attorney, Savannah Story, argued that the lawsuit should be dismissed — citing that WCDS believes Griffin’s claims are “barred by the statute of limitations” and factually inaccurate.

And it demanded, among other things, that the retired solider, who the school claims created the problem by knowingly purchasing a lot behind a 50-year-old baseball field and cutting down trees that would have guarded his home from longballs, pay its legal fees.

The school denied that balls were hit into Griffin’s yard “regularly and repeatedly.” “( WCDS) has minimal baseball games and practice activities that cause baseballs hit by (its team’s) players and other baseball teams to cross the boundary,” the Defendant’s Motions, Answer & Affirmative Defenses reads.

And it also denied that baseballs “currently continue to trespass onto and damage (Griffin’s) property.”

But perhaps the most interesting defense offered by WCDS is that Griffin, himself, was negligent — that when he purchased the property beyond the school’s baseball diamond, he was aware that the ballfield existed and still chose to build a home and to remove the tree barrier that would have protected it from homerun balls. “(Griffin) purchased the property described in his complaint with full knowledge that (WCDS’s) property was used as a baseball field. Further, (Griffin) includes in his complaint that he removed trees from his property that provided an additional barrier to reduce the number of baseballs that enter his property,” the school’s response reads. “Defendant’s property has been used as a baseball field for over fifty years, the use has been open and notorious, and the substantial identity of the easement has not changed for at least twenty years. Therefore, any allegation off trespass against (WCDS) must fail.”

According to documents obtained by Wayne Week, should the judge decline to dismiss the lawsuit, the parties are expected to be ready for trial Nov. 18.n

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the SPECTATOR

Back to school

Summer break is coming to an end, so the Goldsboro Housing Authority held a "Back to School" event at Herman Park to ensure local children are ready for the new school year.

Photos by Casey Mozingo

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