Public Officials Must Tell the Truth, Investigate Problems In Law Enforcement Agencies

Attorney General Eric Holder testified to a Senate Committee November 8, 2011 about accomplishments of the Department of Justice as well as about “Operation Fast and Furious” in which the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms) allegedly allowed 2,000 or more firearms to be trafficked to Mexican drug cartels, and have turned up at bloody crime scenes across Mexico since.  One was allegedly used to kill U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian A. Terry in Rico, AZ in a shootout with Mexican drug runners.  Holder previously testified that he had no earlier knowledge of the operation, but documents have surfaced that show otherwise.

Holder began his November 8, 2011, testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee by listing many significant achievements of the DOJ:

On other fronts, the Department has made extraordinary progress in protecting civil rights, combating financial fraud, safeguarding our environment, and advancing our fight against violent crime. We have filed a record number of criminal civil rights cases.

I am proud of these – and our many other – achievements….., I’d like to take a moment to address the public safety crisis of guns flowing across our border into Mexico – and the local law enforcement operation known as “Fast and Furious” that has brought renewed public attention to this shared national security threat.

Holder characterizes his response to the mission this way:

To ensure that it will not (happen again), after learning about the allegations raised by ATF agents involved with Fast and Furious, I took action. I asked the Department’s Inspector General to investigate the matter, and I ordered that a directive be sent to the Department’s law enforcement agents and prosecutors stating that such tactics violate Department policy and will not be tolerated.

Some of the overheated rhetoric might lead you to believe that this local, Arizona-based operation was somehow the cause of the epidemic of gun violence in Mexico. In fact, Fast and Furious was a flawed response to, not the cause of, the flow of illegal guns from the United States into Mexico.

As someone who has seen the consequences of gun violence firsthand – and who has promised far too many grieving families that I would do everything in my power not only to seek justice on behalf of their loved ones, but also to prevent other families from experiencing similar tragedies – I am determined to ensure that our shared concerns about Operation Fast and Furious lead to more than headline-grabbing Washington “gotcha” games and cynical political point scoring.

But is it really “gotcha games” to expect public officials to be fully informed of their own operations, to tell the truth about it, and to respond with truthful information?

Do the many accomplishments by the Department of Justice, or any public entity or official, override the absolute requirement to be truthful in their testimony?  No--particularly in matters of the Department of Justice, who essentially are charged with policing our nation, absolute honesty should be demanded. 

There is talk of perjury charges against Holder and a call for President Obama to fire Holder if he doesn’t resign.  David Baumann of Main Justice reports, “Paul Gosar (R-AZ) went so far as to suggest that administration officials be charged as accessories to Terry’s death.”

Grace Wyler of Business Insider wrote this in an October 6, 2011 article regarding exposure of memos:

New documents, released this week, indicate that Holder may have lied to Congress about how much and when he knew about the sting, known as Operation Fast and Furious, in which U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) agents allowed more than 2,000 firearms to "walk" across the U.S. border to Mexico and into the hands of Mexico’s brutal drug cartels.

As many as 1,700 of those weapons have since been lost, and more than 100 have been found at bloody crime scenes on both sides of the border, including at the murder site of a U.S. Border Patrol agent in Arizona last December. The sting is now the subject of a Congressional investigation to find out who was responsible for or knew about the operation.

In May 2011, Holder testified before Congress that he "probably heard about Fast and Furious for the first time over the last few weeks." But new evidence reveals that Holder was informed that guns were being "walked" into Mexico at least nine months earlier.

The memos, sent by the National Drug Intelligence Center and Asst. AG Lanny Breuer, indicate that high-level DOJ officials, including Holder, were fully aware that guns were being "walked" into Mexico.

The memo leaves no doubt that senior DOJ officials knew.

The GOP is now turning up the heat on Holder, who it appears may have actually perjured himself. House Oversight Chair Darrell Issa, the Republican leading the investigation, is now demanding Holder "come forward and at least admit" he knew about Fast and Furious.

"He implied he knew nothing when in fact he at least knew something,” Issa said on Fox News yesterday. "“We certainly would like to believe that he was disingenuous but not lying. The fact is, the people who are making those statements on his behalf are lying on his behalf, period.”

There are indications the Obama administration may be cracking under the pressure — CBS reporter Sharyl Attkisson said yesterday that White House spokesman Eric Schultz "screamed and cussed" at her over a story she published on Fast and Furious.

But the White House has been steadfast in its defense of Holder, who is a close confidante of Obama.

It matters what you know, when you found out, and whether you investigate properly and tell the truth.  Because, as Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) stated, “The lack of candor and honesty from our nation’s chief law enforcement officials in this matter is deeply disturbing.”  He and Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) are investigating the operation, and Holder’s statements and testimony regarding his knowledge of the operation.  There is documentation that Holder received multiple memos about the operation prior to July, 2010, but then testified to the committee in April, 2011 that he did not know.

When public officials, especially in the area of law enforcement, are willing to say they did not know about issues they have been informed of, it is not acceptable.  In the case of Eric Holder, often company to Charlotte’s Police Chief Rodney Monroe, he  is definitely under fire for doing so.  Holder has been to Charlotte for induction ceremonies of new police recruits to the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department, and his name is often invoked around Charlotte.  Chief Monroe spent over 20 years in Washington, DC and the topic of his connections there is a popular topic with him and with Charlotte’s politicians.  There is grant money and other money to Charlotte tied to Holder. 

Currently, Chief Monroe, CMPD attorneys, City of Charlotte attorneys, City Manager Curt Walton, City Council, and of course Mayor Foxx have a long list of issues presented to them with questionable operations at the CMPD.  Most continue to go uncorrected and even unaddressed, no matter what information is presented to them.  They will not answer for the 50 brand new police cars reported unaccounted for by Deputy Chief Graue, even when she made a direct report to Charlotte City Council and the Mayor at a City Council meeting.  Their only known response was to give the CMPD another $5 Million to buy more cars, of questionable utility at that.

The CMPD has absolutely refused to release even basic information about the Great Balls of Fire “non-profit” corporation which receives public money and is listed as the corporation to receive funds for the CMPD Blue Hornets baseball team.  The few details given out are part of an ever-changing story that first stated everything was funded by the officers who were playing ball.  That turned out to be false, even according to Public Affairs Captain Brian Cunningham, who stated that some “money for uniforms” came from the General Fund.

Deputy Chief Graham, who is the listed agent for Great Balls of Fire, has refused to provide and information.  So has Major Paul Zinkann, listed on the Blue Hornets website as Board Member and the person to contact for information.  All refuse to provide even a Board of Directors’ roster or a Board Annual Report.  None will give information about who paid for some expensive trips to other states, who sponsors are, or who is receiving funds from the group.  Not one penny has been accounted for, despite questions about hundreds of thousands of dollars shown as property depreciation on tax returns for DC Graham’s organization. 

Rodney Monroe’s CMPD, with knowledge by his boss City Manager Curt Walton, as well as City Council and Mayor Foxx, continues to deflect questions about Crime Statistics that make no sense. 

There are very strange items which have been spent under what is known as Asset Forfeiture funds—from a guitar to “Team Charlotte” expenditures.  Rodney Monroe’s Office of the Chief continues to refuse explanation of these items, as well as what projects are covered by the catch all “special projects” of Chief Monroe.  Asset Forfeiture funds MUST be approved in advance, dedicated only to a particular kind of law enforcement expenses, and are not allowed to be used for regular budget items, according to Federal Law.   Officials in Charlotte will not explain why there seem to be violations and a lack of accounting, at best.

During Monroe’s tenure, he has claimed huge drops in Crime according to what he reports to the FBI as Type I crimes, but has also removed all traceable data from the Charmeck.org web site.  He has also refused to answer for the various crime numbers that are completely mismatched, even among his own publications.

All seem to be using the full weight of attorneys for the City of Charlotte to delay--maybe impede--access to public information which would fully bring all these issues to light.

This didn’t work out well for officials at Penn State University, who are now charged with crimes for their alleged cover-up efforts.  There are now calls for charges against Attorney General Eric Holder for perjury. 

How much information is documented to officials in Charlotte’s City Hall?

More Soft Southside , Hard at Harding

Back in July, CMPD released results of a survey conducted which they claimed was a customer satisfaction survey of all of Charlotte about the job the police department was doing and how safe everybody felt.  They did not, however, get any kind of statistically relevant numbers and seemed to go on a promotional tour of interviews that really wasn’t talking about crime or policing.

Forty-five percent (45%) of the respondents to the survey were located in the South Charlotte Division, with one of the lowest crime rates in Charlotte, if not the lowest.

Naturally, a fair portion of these people would say they feel fairly safe in their homes and areas, but Chief Monroe still points to the overall numbers as a demand for more officers at the same time.  Which is it:  is everyone safer, with crime down?  OR do we need more officers because of higher crime rates.

If we could just see the crime data that has been removed by Chief Monroe from charmeck.org, and have access to all the reports to figure out why CMPD’s numbers are so terribly off from what they report in different locations, we might know the answer.

Meanwhile, consider again the attitude directed toward different parts of town.  A recent post shows the absolute throw-away treatment by elected officials and the management of the CMPD of the Camp Greene Neighborhood Association looking for assistance with a halfway house for 75 possibly violent prisoners that a contractor wanted (or maybe still wants) to release into their residential area next to playgrounds, churches, schools, and homes.  The post compares this to what documents and reports show are a ‘special-op’ of some kind launched to discover the thief of some plastic campaign yard signs for Patrick Cannon’s campaign supporter, after he made a call to the higher-ups at CMPD (the highest). 

Now see that there’s a contest of sorts going on in five South Charlotte neighborhoods.  Officers are spending time basically looking for people who have left their property vulnerable, and competing for a trophy if they don’t have their stuff sitting around unlocked.  And a sign. 

It seems like they did this last year, although this hasn’t been verified—but it also seems like this is another Public Relations ploy to say that the police are active and involved in Neighborhood Watch.  Why go around tagging people who don’t care enough to roll up car windows, keep wallets out of unlocked cars, close garage doors when not inside, etc… (as the police say they’re targeting) and ignore Neighborhood Watch groups begging for help, such as Camp Greene?  Is there a proven decrease in serious crime from conducting such busy work that could not better be accomplished more widely with other means?

Also, ALL Neighborhood Watch groups and all of Charlotte would benefit from having the Significant Event Logs, Watch Commander Logs, Calls For Service, Crime Reports, and more available to the public.  It is public information and must be reinstituted to public review.

Meanwhile, across at the Harding High School, reports of crime have increased by four times and there have been death threats.  Specific dates with threats have been issued.  Harding High School is located on Alleghany between Freedom Drive and the Billy Graham Parkway.   Many parents don’t feel they’re getting enough information or help.  At least one Charlotte Mecklenburg School Board Member agrees.

Harding was put on lock-down October 27^th after a threat to shoot and kill a student was phoned in to the school.  Other details have not been released.  Since then, graffiti indicating turf wars of a sort has damaged large parts of the school.  At a School Board Meeting last night, the plan was for the Board to receive a report about the Harding School situation.  However, the report has been postponed until December 13^th.  With all of the violent threats, and what students and parents report as daily fights, this postponement should not be tolerated.

WCNC’s Ben Thompson reports “the members will now hear the report on December 13, when two new members will take their seats on the Board.  Kaye McGarry was the sole dissenter, voting to view the report Wednesday.

"Let's just sweep it under the rug. We don't want the public to know," McGarry chided her colleagues. "The kids are scared. The parents are scared. This has become a security issue."

If you ask anyone else in charge, they’ll probably tell you everything is fine.

This is "Success With Honor" ?

Can anyone explain the crowds of people gathered and chanting support outside “Coach” Joe Paterno’s house?  Citynewswatch has read the facts and wonders if more charges in this case will be forthcoming.  Paterno’s account at best is that someone came to him and reported witnessing the rape of a small boy in the showers at Penn State facilities by one of his staff, and Paterno didn’t immediately call the police.  He never did.  The Grand Jury has found that at least eight more known victims of the alleged child predator exist.  The Attorney General is expecting more to come forward. 

Can someone explain the chanting crowd? 


The November 5, 2011 Press Release from the Attorney General’s office out of Pennsylvania has this headline:  “Childsex charges filed against Jerry Sandusky; two top Penn State Universityofficials charged with perjury & failure to report suspected child abuse”, and goes on to say:

"This is a case about a sexual predator who used his position within the university and community to repeatedly prey on young boys," Kelly said. "It is also a case about high-ranking university officials who allegedly failed to report the sexual assault of a young boy after the information was brought to their attention, and later made false statements to a grand jury that was investigating a series of assaults on young boys.

A lesson for anyone who doesn’t need this level of depravity to shock them into making a correct choice, take this as a general consideration:

"Equally disturbing is the lack of action and apparent lack of concern among those same officials, and others who received information about this case, who either avoided asking difficult questions or chose to look the other way."

This is not honor.

Some of those officials in this case are facing criminal charges already, and there are signals of more to come.  It should send a message to everyone that each is responsible for their own actions, especially when there is a possibility of criminal activity—of any kind. 

Read the full GRAND JURY REPORT laying out 8 victims identified and the details of their testimonies given to the jury.   Also observe the findings of fact that Sandusky established the “Second Mile Foundation” in 1977 with a stated mission to “help children who need additional support and would benefit from positive human interaction.”  In 1977, it started as a group foster home, and the program grew.  The possibility of others coming forward certainly exists. 

March 2, 2002, the then-10-year-old child who is in the news is named as “victim 2” in the Grand Jury report.  The Grand Jury reports that a Graduate Student observed Sandusky “having anal intercourse with” (unknown why they would not call this raping) the 10-year-old boy in the showers after hours.  The then-28-year-old Grad Student observed both the boy and Sandusky see him, then he ran away. 

What kind of person would observe an adult male raping a 10-year-old boy and not run toward the child to help?

After leaving and placing a phone call to his father instead of 911, the two of them decided the Grad Student would report it… to the Coach Joe Paterno.  Paterno reported to Athletic Director Curley.  Senior VP for Finance and Business Schulz and Athletic Director Curley had a meeting 1 1/2 weeks later and got the same report of the anal rape in the shower by Sandusky of a 10-year-old child, though they never bothered to find out who the child was. 

Schulz and Curley took away a couple of privileges at the school, if not in practice, and notified the Foundation of something—but not strongly enough to have Sandusky stop working with little boys.

One thing that did not happen from any of the adults entrusted with doing the right moral or legal thing is this:  no one contacted the police.  The graduate student who has testified he directly witnessed the rape of a 10-year-old child, Coach Joe Paterno, Athletic Director Curley,  Senior VP for Finance and Business Schulz should all have contacted the police at each step they were informed.  The Grand Jury stated they found ALL of his testimony to be “extremely credible.”  Even though Schulz oversaw the University Police, he didn’t even inform them. 

It sees that to keep the whole thing quiet may have been the biggest concern.

Curley and Schulz have been charged with perjury to the grand jury.  You can read the reports that explain why.  It feels like there should be charges for failure to report for the others involved and for Curley and Schulz.  The Grand Jury report references the law requiring reporting requirements—which may indicate more charges are forthcoming.   It feels so insidious that people would know about this for a minimum of nine years, possibly thirteen or longer, and allow Sandusky to continue to act, uninvestigated, free to look for other victims in a foundation he set up for at-risk youth, according to the indictment.  As the Attorney General and our legal system affirm, all charged are considered innocent until and unless convicted of any crimes.

There is at least one incident known to police and certain Penn State staff as early as 1998. 

There are 8 victims named in the Grand Jury report, dating back to 1994. 

If anyone who legitimately says they witness the rape of a child can walk away from that child, what hope is there for any other crime or corruption going on?  If you can think about this story without your stomach turning, you need help.  If you are cheering any of these people on, please seek help now. 

If you have witnessed or suspect sexual abuse:  do the right thing and report it.  Children are at stake.   I you have been the victim of sexual abuse, report that, too.  Predators don’t stop preying without “intervention.”

If you are a predator, stop destroying lives and turn yourself in.

Update:

Another question relates to the charges from the earlier dates of alleged victims not covered in this grand jury report.  Part of the mystery is explained in a missing District Attorney who was investigating those charges.  It’s unknown at this time why the charges weren’t picked back up again, or what happened to a DA described elsewhere as a very private man, but with a good relationship with his ex-wife and children, and a girlfriend.  Excerpts from the New York Times article are below and you can view the entire article by Ken Belson “Questions on Sandusky Are Wrapped in a 2005Mystery”   

One of the questions surrounding the sex-abuse case against Jerry Sandusky is why a former district attorney chose not to prosecute the then-Penn State assistant coach in 1998 after reports surfaced that he had inappropriate interactions with a boy.

The answer is unknowable because of an unsolved mystery: What happened to Ray Gricar, the Centre County, Pa., district attorney?

Gricar went missing in April 2005. The murky circumstances surrounding his disappearance — an abandoned car, a laptop recovered months later in a river without a hard drive, his body was never found — have spawned Web sites, television programs and conspiracy theories. More than six years later, the police still receive tips and reports of sightings.

Gricar’s cellphone was in the car, but not his laptop, wallet or keys, which were never recovered. Months later, the laptop was found in the Susquehanna River without its hard drive, which was discovered later. It was too damaged to yield any information.

Easy to Miss: Foxx 10,000 Job Disclaimer

Exposing the Business Number Claims

In addition to the November 4th WSOC report about Mayor Foxx’s misleading job creation claims, consider this report from January 10, 2010 by Kirsten Valle at WCNC.com/the Charlotte Observer, which explains that the Charlotte Chamber “found that things began to turn around beginning in the third quarter last year (before Foxx was elected as Mayor). By the end of 2009, the Charlotte area had won major job announcements from companies such as GMAC, US Bancorp, Toshiba, Siemens and Electrolux - the largest corporate headquarters relocation since 1985.”  In other words, all of these companies were on their way before Foxx came into office.   WSOC already exposed the Electrolux line item, but Seimans and Toshiba account for another 905 jobs on the Mayor’s list that he’s taking credit for which he shouldn’t.

Possible Disclaimer to Jobs Numbers Claims

Foxx has also been claiming creation of 14,000 new jobs during his term, and hasn’t answered many questions about those numbers.  You can see an interview with candidate ScottStone on Tuesday of this past week by Fox 18's Terrance Bates and on Friday with incumbent candidate Anthony Foxx.  And If you listen very closely, you can hear Anthony Foxx state that the net positive job growth is 4,000 during his 2 years in office, not the 14,000 advertised job growth. 

He also quickly says that not all of the 14,000 in gross numbers (so also net) “have been filled yet.”  This is another way of saying they don’t exist yet.  They are likely among the projections of numerous unfilled grants, often for projects that voters didn’t want in the first place, and which encumber us for federal and matching local taxes for years to come.

Mayor Foxx, did you count the jobs you said you were creating to build the $37 million mile and a half stretch of rail from the arena to the hospital in this jobs number?  What else did you include in there?  Foxx’s staff told WSOC they would stick with their claims, even when Jason Stoogenke proved one company the Mayor said he brought to Charlotte wasn’t even in North Carolina, and then refused to answer any questions about the discrepancy.  Refusing to answer questions about problems that are uncovered seems to be an ongoing problem.  Don’t we deserve answers?

Power to Vote & Power in Office

 

 

“Only he deserves power who every day justifies it”

 

--Dag Hammarskjöld,

former Secretary General of the United Nations and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize

Different Standards of Service?

Does it pay to have connections?

Is it only those who with sufficient financial resources that can gain the ear and assistance of the Mayor Foxx and City Council Members?  And Police Chief Rodney Monroe, who claims credit for huge reductions in crime (even though none of the above will release the real crime numbers)?  When a key contributor to Mayor Pro Tem Patrick Cannon’s campaign fell victim to some teenage pranksters stealing plastic “Re-Elect Cannon” signs valued at a few dollars from her front yard, this set off a multi-day operation to catch the perps (both victim and perpetrators live in the high-end neighborhood of Foxcroft) which a CMPD source told Pundit House writer Mark Pellin cost at least $15,000.  This doesn’t count court time yet.  You can view details of the police reports and campaign contributions at CedarPosts.blogspot report.

What happens if you’re on the West Side and need some contacts?

Compare this campaign caper with the reaction to a West Side neighborhood asking for help.  The Historic Camp Greene neighborhood has struggled and made significant progress toward reducing crime with a strong community association and some folks who were paying attention.   Historic Camp Greene is only one mile from downtown Charlotte (uptown to some), and is a former 6,000 acre World War I training camp.   Leaving downtown on West Morehead, the neighborhood is bordered by that street, Wilkinson Blvd, Camp Greene, and contains a good section of Remount Road.

When the Alston Wilkes Society announced their intention to build a half-way house for 75 Federal Prisoners right in the middle of their neighborhood—next to pre-schools, playgrounds, churches, schools and residential buildings—neighbors were not complacent or silent.  When incorrect information went out from those who wanted a contract to house newly-released prisoners in their neighborhood, they corrected it.  And they contacted all the people that should have helped them:  police and elected officials.

Back on September 19^th and 20^th, one local news station did help by covering the story before a neighborhood meeting with the AWS and followed up after, even if the second report got some facts wrong.  They mistakenly said 15 beds were planned instead of 75, but here are some of the main facts presented by WCNC:

The Camp Greene neighborhood is lined with trees, a church and day care. But don't let the beauty of the neighborhood fool you.

Camp Greene is a fragile neighborhood. There was a fatal shooting this month, and neighbors will tell you that their streets have been burdened with prostitutes, drugs, and gangs. The last thing the people of Camp Greene want is a halfway house for convicted felons.

 

"We're trying to come back. We're like everyone else in Charlotte. We want a nice neighborhood," said Linda Macon, a resident of Camp Greene.

 

There were strong questions, too about exactly who Alston Wilkes wanted to house in the proposed facility.  The first answers from their representative seemed evasive to residents:

"If it's someone we don't think is suitable then we don't accept them," said Erin Roberts of Alston Wilkes. She said the residents would be non-violent offenders.

Reporter Ann Sheridan got specific, and on the record:  “Could a child molester or a rapist be among those people (that you would accept)?”

Roberts response:  “That’s highly unlikely at this time.”  (In other words, ‘yes’).

Another resident present for the meeting was concerned about dodging other questions, telling citynewswatch:  “We asked if they open and problems arise, what procedures are in place to provide resolution for the neighbors. Again, they dodged the question but finally said we can appoint a (single) representative to their advisory council. They did not specify how many members are on this council or what authority it has.” 

Other information from the neighborhood meeting is that the turnover for offenders would be every three months.  Previous offenders will graduate and new offenders would enter the facility every 3 months.  This is barely enough time to identify anyone and know who should or shouldn’t be active in certain parts of the community.  And the facility would NOT be kept locked.  Offenders will be allowed to walk the streets.

Well, it’s only Camp Greene, right?

Off-record, residents expressed they are offended and concerned at what they perceive as Ms. Roberts attempt to couch their proposed facility as the only alternative to releasing a bunch of dangerous felons to the streets of Camp Greene.  She said in the report:

"When you understand that these folks are released to this community anyway and that we're trying to give them a place for employment and a place to live rather than just release them into the streets - it's actually helpful to the neighborhood."

Roberts made this statement almost as if to scare people into thinking parole requirements would be abolished and felons would be released into Camp Greene if the facility weren’t allowed.  It was as if Camp Greene had been designated by someone as a dumping ground, in her estimation at least?   Resident Jenny Herman calls it very directly:

"I kind of wonder if the economics of our neighborhood has anything to do with it" said Jenny Herman. "No one would try to put it in Myers Park. This neighborhood is not wealthy. If they tried to put it there, there would be massive protests," she said.

Meanwhile, Camp Greene residents can’t even get a return letter from Mayor Foxx or anyone in office.  This is an area so overwhelmed with crime that it was declared a prostitution exclusion zone.  Camp Greene neighbors have worked so hard to bring down crime, you might think they would receive some support from Police Chief Rodney Monroe and City Manager Curt Walton, who take every opportunity to say neighborhood involvement is key to achieving the stellar crime reductions they continue to claim. 

WCNC also reported what the Alston Wilkes Society probably passed along: that the decision to put the halfway house in their at-risk but tight-knit residential area had to do with an available, suitable property that had the right zoning.  All other arguments aside, this assertion by the Federal Bureau of Prisons bidder was completely false. 

One City of Charlotte employee did come through in the end regarding this particular location, and that was Principal Planner Alan Goodwin, who rightly declared that the proposed use would be considered a jail, and would not be allowed in an O-2 zoning at 2128 Remount Road.  Goodwin made this declaration in an email:

This Emerald Request was filed by (resident, who) is concerned with plans to establish a halfway-house type of facility for paroled ex-convicts at a building located at 2128 Remount Road (Parcel #06706103).  This use is being proposed by The Alston Wilkes Society of South Carolina; Anne Walker is the organization’s CEO.

I can respond to the next-to-last paragraph of (resident’s name) request regarding zoning.  The parcel at 2128 Remount Road is zoned O-2 (Office). The type of facility being proposed by The Alston Wilkes Society is considered to be a jail under the Charlotte Zoning Ordinance. Jails are permitted in O-2 zoning under prescribed conditions, one of them being that the lot on which they are located must be a minimum of two acres. The size of the subject parcel is 0.725 acres. Even if this parcel were combined with the adjacent County-owned parcels (#06706102 and #06706101), it would still be less than two acres in size. Therefore, the proposed facility is not permitted in this location under current zoning.

Candidate Lawana Mayfield did forward an email from the group.  It’s unknown whether candidate Ed Toney did the same, but he did come to the neighborhood association meeting.

Not one politician in office nor anyone from the Office of Chief Monroe responded with assistance to say this is not the right place to put a halfway house, or try to assist.

Bureau of Prisons decision delayed

The original contract award letter said it would be done 120 days before 12/1.  That date has come and gone, and the federal government will not disclose the current status of the contract.  So while this Remount Road location is out, there’s no telling where the halfway house or the Alston Wilkes Society could show up in the near future.  This is what the contract specialist at the Bureau of Prisons had to say just this past week, responding to concerns and questions.  It’s one of those non-answers:

Currently, the solicitation is in the evaluation phase.  In order to maintain the confidentiality of the evaluation process, the contracting officer is limited in the information that can be disseminated, particularly concerning offeror(s) to a solicitation.  The contracting officer has collective responsibility for many decisions during the evaluation process and must treat data concerning each offeror in confidence.

After contract evaluation is completed for FRP 200-1128-MA, Charlotte, NC, the obligation of the contracting officer shall remain in effect until contract award.  All information pertaining to the award, can be found on the Federal Business Opportunities website at www.fbo.gov.  

Edgar L. Stanton

Contract Specialist

Federal Bureau of Prisons

Community Corrections Contracting

Washington, DC

(202) 307-3070

There’s no answer to when the contract will be awarded or how.  Politicians and police, as well as other organizations have a second round of opportunity to get this right.   Maybe Charlotte doesn’t need another halfway house at all.  If it does, maybe 75 paroled inmates in one location isn’t sensible.  Maybe the location shouldn’t be secret until after award, and locations should be vetted.  Maybe they could answer some letters or calls for those in all parts of town.

West Side deserves some vocal support

Mayor Foxx yanked the West Corridor rail funding that was supposed to revitalize that area in favor of $37 million for a 1 ½ mile link from a mostly-empty stadium to a dead-end into Presbyterian Hospital.  There’s already a trolley line buried in the street that won’t be activated for years.  What exactly is the plan and why does all the money seem to go in one direction? 

If Mayor Foxx and the rest are truthful and serious about crime reduction, job creation, and having a city that is a modern growth center, we had all better get serious about holding our leaders accountable.  Quality of Life matters for all residents of Charlotte.  If you only care for selfish reasons: crime and poverty end up affecting your pocket book, your tax rates, and possibly result in direct crimes against you.  Just ask Justine Tobin—her “Re-Elect Cannon” signs were stolen more than once.  Fortunately, she had the right numbers to call to get some action. 

Below are two letters sent from a concerned resident seeking assistance from Charlotte’s representatives over this matter, with details of the specific concerns and a plea for action.

Wed, Sep 21, 2011 at 1:33 PM

Subject:  Proposed halfway house

I wrote many of you previously to express my concerns about the halfway house proposed to be located at 2128 Remount Road. I attended the Camp Greene Neighborhood Association meeting last night for a presentation by Anne Walker, CEO of The Alston Wilkes Society, and her staff.  The following issues concern me:

When asked why they chose not to approach the neighborhood group despite claiming to want to be good neighbors, they said that they did not know of neighborhood group and "did not have time to research" it prior to their submittal.

There are two signs with our group's name (1 w/website address) located in the same block as the proposed facility. A call to any local official or even visit to the charmeck website would have turned up information had they thought to look for it. If they are forced to cut corners at this stage, what kind of corners might they cut due to lack of time/staff/funds when 75 parolees are bunked in our struggling neighborhood?

Mrs. Walker and her staff avoided giving relevant answers to direct questions. We asked how we can be sure no violent criminals are housed at the facility. Mrs. Walker's reply was that they have great credibility and do great work and anyone who has done business with them in SC can attest to that.  That's all well and good but did not answer the question. This theme was repeated throughout the night.

They had no idea that the existing facility (operated by the McLeod Center) is located in a stable neighborhood away from single family residential and near public transportation.

Mrs. Walker tried to frame the issue as choice between either letting parolees run loose with no aftercare (in our neighborhood) or having their facility in our neighborhood.

Mrs. Walker admittedly has no idea if selecting an alternate location is possible.

The director and staff started their presentation suggesting that the audience was opposed to the facility due to stereotypes about how felons look and admonished us to be more compassionate to the struggles their clients have faced.

Our group invited Mrs. Walker in good faith to answer our questions about what impact this facility will have on our neighborhood and for reassurance that they will go out of their way to be a responsible neighbor. Instead, she chose to insult us and belittle our concerns. It was unprofessional and offensive. Our neighborhood is one of Charlotte's most diverse and also one of its most economically fragile. One can only assume they resorted to this approach b/c they lacked credible support for their proposal. 

The staff implied that this was the only property for sale in Charlotte that was zoned appropriately when repeatedly asked why this site was chosen.

They were totally ignorant of neighborhood issues - violent crime (including 4 shootings in the past month), homicides, property crimes, rampant prostitution, drug crimes, gang activity, etc.

Again all of this is readily available online through news sources, local government sources and even our own neighborhood website.

They told us that the parolees they intend to house would be in our neighborhood whether this facility opens or not (as though Charlotte consists solely of the Camp Greene neighborhood).

The representatives told us no violent criminals would be housed at the facility. Mrs. Walker backtracked when confronted by an audience member and admitted they could house violent offenders (& are housing them at existing facilities) but would guarantee that they won't be here "if that's what it takes".

Five minutes prior, Mrs. Walker led us to believe it was not even in the realm of possibilities but now we potentially have her guarantee that they won't be housed here.   They offered no answer when asked how we could be assured no one housed there is a violent criminal (since they already misrepresented themselves).

When asked if they had resolution procedures in place to ensure us that if problems arose as a result of their operation we would have recourse.

Their answers were all over the place but basically consisted of telling us that a neighborhood rep. can join their advisory council and/or we can just call them if problems arise. No further detail such as how big this council is or what power it has were provided.

I am concerned that this group seems so woefully ignorant of the community in which they wish to set up shop.  They know nothing of the location or operation of the facilities they wish to replace. They did not bother to research the extensive crime problems in the neighborhood nor do they seem to care of the potential harmful effects of their facility on the neighborhood. Even if their residents prove to be model citizens, the stigma of such a facility is more than a neighborhood as fragile as ours can bear. The misrepresentations they have made, their evasiveness and ignorance of the problems that will affect this location lead me to believe that they are not adequately prepared to operate this facility, will not be honest with us about their operations and will not cooperate with us if problems arise. The stealthy way in which they went about this endeavor and disastrous presentation to the community only serve to add to the concerns I expressed in my previous email (see below).  If I have misconstrued their actions and then we should be worried about their competency to run such a facility. They seem to have been so eager to expand beyond SC that they did not do the proper due diligence.

There also still seems to be disagreement over whether the current zoning will allow for this use. John Howard with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Department was kind enough to take the time to reply to my previous email. In his reply, he informed me that he had spoken to the Zoning Administrator about the project and based of her interpretation of the use, the project would not be allowed because of the proximity to single family uses and zoning. Mrs. Walker and her staff indicate that they have been told the exact opposite. No one else from local government has bothered to weigh-in on the matter.

My neighbors all agree that this is a beneficial program. It is, however, a bad fit for this neighborhood and for the parolees. Both would be better served by continuing the McLeod Center's contract. The City of Charlotte has invested countless dollars and man-hours trying to help the residents of Camp Greene stabilize the neighborhood. This project could do irreparable harm to the progress that has been made here so far.  Again, I hope you will please support our effort to find a more suitable location for this project.

Subject: Proposed halfway house

Date: Tue, 19 Jul 2011 22:01:55 -0400

To whom it may concern:

I am writing to express my concerns about the halfway house proposed by the Alston Wilkes Society to be located in my neighborhood at 2128 Remount Rd. (Charlotte, NC).  Many of us in the neighborhood do not want this facility located here. We have worked hard as a community to rebuild this neighborhood into a safer place. When I moved here six years ago the neighborhood had already achieved significant reductions in crime but was still a hub of prostitution, drugs, and gang activity. The prostitution problem was so bad that the city developed the "prostitution exclusion zone" designation to help combat the issue here. Years later, despite the progress we have made, we still have more than our fair share of issues with drug crime, prostitution, violent crime, property crime, run-down & abandoned housing (where more crime takes place) and gangs.  This is not to mention issues with the questionable businesses bordering us, such as the Vox night club, which has been a magnet for shootings, drugs and has even been the site of a fatal shooting. Several of the hotels in the area have had these same issues. All of this is within walking distance of the proposed halfway house.

Our neighborhood is still far too fragile to have a facility like this. It will impair all the efforts made by our community and the city to change the image of this part of town. All of the resources that have been used for efforts to improve this area will be for naught. You can tout the area as anything you want but given its history of trouble and a brand new 75 bed halfway house full of parolees, businesses and families will be reluctant to locate here.  You should also give some attention to the 75 beds crammed next to single family residences and adjacent to an elementary school. I think that density is a bit much for the location. The school operation is housed at Christ Presbyterian Church and the playground the children use is beside the facility where these parolees and ex-cons will be located. What types of criminals will be allowed to stay there? Will there be people who were sent to prison for violent crimes or even sexual predators? No one from Alston Wilkes has approached our neighborhood group answer these questions. To my knowledge, they haven't approached our neighborhood association at all despite their insistence in the letter they sent to CMPD they seek input from police, elected officials and the local community. I would think if they are concerned with being good neighbors they would have started by approaching the neighbors of the area in which they plan to operate.

There are far too many unknowns in this equation for this to be good for either the neighborhood or the prospective residents of this facility. Surely easy access to such things as drugs, prostitutes and all manner of illegal activities is not in the best interest of those you are trying to reform. I appreciate that these are (hopefully) people wanting to be productive members of society again but I think their criminal histories and the history of trouble that our neighborhood is struggling to overcome make this a bad fit. I hope we can count on your support to find a more suitable location for this facility.

Sincerely,

(signed from Camp Greene Resident)

Jerry Orr Flying High Again

Charlotte Douglas International Airport Director Jerry Orr has done it again.  And our City’s leaders, who all say they are for “jobs, jobs, jobs” are all purportedly behind this move, too, although the approval vote won’t officially take place until November 14^th.

First, Orr suggested that for our safety, we should give an exclusive contract to only three cab companies to sit out front and receive all the outgoing business from the airport.  

Boy, were some faces red when it was exposed that one of those companies was made up of convicted felons—convicted over matters of producing fraudulent documents.  Even more embarrassing, on the small committee that approved the whole thing was Major Timothy Danchess, former head of Internal Affairs for the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department, and Mujeeb Shah-Khan, a highly-ranked attorney for the City of Charlotte.  It seems background check wasn’t high on the list for an attorney and a police officer, or for the Airport Director, who said he started this process over a safety concern. 

Well, you can still drive any taxi in Charlotte right up to the front door if you're dropping off, so safety doesn’t seem to be the real issue in the exclusive pickup contract.  And if the cleanliness or uniformity of cabs is an issue, then pass inspection requirements for everyone.  Ditto for Drivers’ background checks.  Doesn’t every cab passenger deserve quality and safety, no matter where they are in this city? 

That move was about something else.

Now there’s an announcement that all other banks’ ATM’s will be removed from the airport except for Bank of America, who will also receive exclusive advertising rights.  Great move to show Charlotte as a one-trick town for all the visitors arriving next year for the DNC 2012 convention, and any advance teams visiting as well.

What about convenience and fees for our visiting public?  Isn’t this just another monopoly at the airport, with funds going somewhere—but certainly not to the user or the City?  Will the extolled profits reduce costs to airport users in any way?   

The CRVA (Charlotte Regional Visitor’s Association) is charged with advertising at the airport.  Remember the CRVA?  They have barely been on the tongues of a politician or reporter since the constant stream of scandals drove them underground, but maybe this idea was one they helped with.   Someone needs to check the books on this deal.

More likely, this is just one more example of promoting one business over another for a relatively small payout which is going toward unstated expenses.  This is a town with extremely high unemployment, and heavily reliant on the banking industry.   Mayor Foxx claims he is bringing in jobs.  Was it a good idea to give several banks the boot out of our international airport, and put up exclusive promotional materials for Bank of America, especially just before the DNC 2012 convention is coming?                (No.)