Former Charlotte City Council member Warren Turner, fired in July 2010 from his job as a state probation officer, has been reinstated.
Turner began working again with the state probation office earlier this month as a judicial services coordinator in Gaston County.
Pamela Walker, the N.C. Department of Public Safety's deputy director of communications, told the Observer in a prepared statement Friday that Turner had been reinstated after the N.C. Department of Correction reviewed the appeal of his firing.
"After careful consideration of the issues raised by both Mr. Turner and the DOC, the parties have reached a mutual settlement agreement," Walker said in the statement. "The department reviewed Mr. Turner's level of career experience and agrees to his reinstatement."
The settlement agreement calls for Turner to receive back pay between the time of his firing and reinstatement. The state also will pay $10,000 to Turner's legal counsel to cover the cost of his appeal.
Walker said the settlement that led to Turner's reinstatement was reached before the appeal came before the N.C. Office of Administrative Hearings.
She also said Turner's annual salary of $41,451 is the same pay he received as a probation officer.
Judicial services coordinators are responsible for the intake of new probation cases, preparing pre-sentence reports and conducting initial risk-needs assessments.
Turner, 47, could not be reached for comment Friday. His attorney, Eric Montgomery, declined comment.
Montgomery said in 2010 that Turner would appeal his firing. He said the reasons listed by the DOC in the letter to Turner were "procedural BS."
Montgomery said the DOC decided it wanted to fire Turner and then looked for a way to do it.
Turner and his attorney have repeatedly said Turner didn't do anything wrong.
Turner, after eight years on the City Council, lost his bid for re-election in 2011. His last term was marred by accusations of sexual harassment.
A city investigation in 2010 found Turner had made sexually inappropriate comments to at least five female staff members. Turner denied the allegations. The City Council declined to censure him.
Turner was fired from his probation officer job for missing meetings or drug screenings with at least 14 probationers, according to a termination letter released by the DOC.
The DOC said Turner falsified at least one record of a home visit with a probationer. The agency also said Turner reported visiting with probationers on days that he was on leave or wasn't scheduled to work.
Turner also had been told not to conduct city business on state time, but then spent hours on his city-issued cellphone conducting city business during state work hours, according to the DOC. His actions, the agency said, were a "blatant disregard" of the earlier warning.
The DOC said it didn't find any evidence that Turner had made sexually inappropriate comments or harassed female probationers.
The Observer reported that in 2009 Mecklenburg County officials told Charlotte City Manager Curt Walton that they believed Turner had misrepresented himself as a county building inspector.
A woman told the Observer that Turner visited a construction site on South Tryon Street and showed his gun to laborers working there. She said he told them he was a building inspector and threatened to put them in jail if they didn't stop working on the house.
After the report, the DOC moved Turner to a desk job and took away his state-issued gun and car pending an investigation. The termination letter didn't address the allegation that Turner showed the laborers a gun.
Turner began his new job as judicial services coordinator Feb. 6. Coordinators do not carry weapons.
Turner has said repeatedly that he did nothing wrong.
Turner, a Democrat, had been a probation officer for 20 years. He was first elected to the City Council in 2003.
I recently had a Long Conversation with Newly Elected Charlotte City Council Member LaWana Mayfield (D).
After speaking with her on Issues involving District 3 & improving the Quality of Life for ALL Charlotte Constituents, I now know that Voting for her was the RIGHT thing to do.
Ms. Mayfield is very Passionate about helping People & she's Passionate about Politics.
She is an Fierce Supporter of Pres. Obama & Equal Human Rights which includes Gay Rights.
Prior to being elected as Charlotte-Mecklenburg's FIRST Openly Gay Politician, Ms. Mayfield worked as a Community Activist & Community Organizer.
Although Ms. Mayfield is Charlotte-Mecklenburg's FIRST Openly Gay Politician, she doesn't use her Sexual Orientation as a Personal Soapbox.
Instead her Soap Box Issues are Issues that involve the People of Charlotte & Equal Human Rights for the People of Charlotte, which includes Gay Rights.
As a BLACK Political Blogger, I am using my Social Media Activism to Educate the BLACK Community about Gay Rights which are included in Human Rights.
Pres. Obama's Administration has to push Gay Rights Equality in order to help bring about REAL Equal Human Rights for EVERYONE! Including the BLACK Community.
This is because in America the Civil Rights Movement has been extremely SLOW to bring Real Change for BLACKS & Latinos.
Thus Equal Human Rights for EVERYONE, MUST include BLACKS, Latinos & the Gay Community!
Ms. Mayfield now serves in former Charlotte City Member Warren Turner's District 3, which houses a Population of 80,000 Constituents, Most of them BLACK & Latinos!
That's 80,000 Possible Votes For President Obama In November!!!!
I have often Blogged about Mr. Turner's Very Slack, Distant Relationship with his BLACK Constituents.
While in Office Mr. Turner ONLY seemed to Focus on his WHITE Constituency & Invested ONLY in those Areas.
While his BLACK Constituency in Southwest Charlotte suffered. For Ex: NO Economic Development Growth, Corrupt HOAs & Poor Public Transportation for Constituents who ride City Buses to Work & to visit their Physicians.
Mr. Turner who served 8 Years, was practically run out of Office by a Mob after being Publicly Humiliated following a Sexual Harassment Scandal.
I Pray his Family recovers from that Scandal but I'm happy he NO longer represents District 3!
Perhaps now Southwest Charlotte's 80,000 Constituents can Finally get some much needed LOVE!
I extend a Warm Welcome to Ms. Mayfield.
I believe she is important to the 2012 DNC & to the Charlotte Community.
I did NOT Vote for Anthony Foxx during his first bid as Charlotte's Mayor because at the time he appeared to represent Status Quo/ Elite Politics.
Especially as it relates to helping Charlotte's Homeless Population.
And because it appeared as if Mayor Foxx didn't give a darn about Charlotte's Homeless citizens, I spoke out Loudly against his Complacency on this issue on my Blog.
However over time I begin to notice a Change in his Governing style.
Mayor Foxx's Administration began to Focus on Helping Reduce Charlotte's Homeless Population by providing Resources for them so they can become Self-Sufficient.
So last November 2011, this time I DID Vote for Anthony Foxx!
Our BLACK & White Politicians Should Earn the BLACK Vote! Especially BLACK Politicians!
Versus Expecting to just receive the BLACK Vote with providing NOTHING for BLACK Voters in return.
I believe LaWana Mayfield's Previous Community Activism EARNED My Vote.
I am Blessed to have her as my Charlotte City Council Member.
LaWana Mayfield's election to the Charlotte City Council this fall was unusual in that she knocked off a long-serving incumbent.
It was historic in that she became the city's first openly Gay Council Member.
When she was preparing to run, Mayfield, a community organizer, said she and her friends wondered how her sexual orientation would play with voters.
What would people think? Would it dominate the campaign?
Not so much, as it turned out.
"We focused so much energy on being prepared to discuss my relationship, we were shocked it didn't come up," said Mayfield, 41. "I didn't have one person ask about my sexuality. I stood at doors and said 'Here is my platform. Do you have any questions?' "
Mayfield defeated Warren Turner in the Democratic primary in September. She then easily defeated Republican Ed Toney in the general election in November.
Mayfield doesn't discuss her sexuality unless asked. Her answer: She wants to represent everyone in her district.
She said she is mostly focused on two issues for her District 3, which includes low-income areas in west Charlotte: improving access to food for residents by attracting more grocery stores or better access to existing ones, and cracking down on absentee landlords.
Mayfield's election has also put focus on whether the city should offer benefits to same-sex partners, an issue that has been simmering for several years.
Mayfield said the issue should be studied, but she deferred on taking a lead role to council member Patsy Kinsey, a fellow Democrat.
Kinsey said she has been working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender groups for a year and believes she is close to getting the six votes needed to make the change.
"I want to do this the right way," Kinsey said.
Mayfield is a native of Opa-Locka, Fla., a Miami suburb. Both her parents died when she was in high school, and Mayfield said it took her a few years to decide what she wanted to do.
In her mid-twenties, she began volunteering, which was her entry into the world of Community Organizing.
She moved to Charlotte 12 years ago. She worked for the Red Cross and did disaster-relief work after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the Iowa floods in 2008.
She has worked for the Immigrant Solidarity Committee and the Charlotte Community Justice Coalition.
After being sworn in Dec. 5, Mayfield, who lives in the Historic Camp Greene neighborhood, said she has been studying to get up to speed on city issues.
A week after taking office, she was one of nine council members to vote in favor of a controversial incentive package to bring Chiquita Brands International's headquarters to Charlotte.
"I did my research - the city provided the who, what, when, where and why," Mayfield said. "At the end of the day I will look at the facts. If I honestly believe it will be beneficial to Charlotte then I will support it."
During tonight's Charlotte City Council meeting Jason Burgess, son of terminally ill & long time Public Servant Susan Burgess, was specially appointed to fill his mother's seat.
This process occurred even after 24 applicants several of them equally qualified as Jason, submitted applications for consideration.
Council members Warren Cooksey (R) and Warren Turner (D) both suggested delaying the appointment process for one week than voting, however their motion was voted down.
James Mitchell (political hack and "yes" man) eagerly offered up the motion to quickly appoint Jason Burgess tonight.
The rest as they say "is history".
Councilman Patrick Cannon (D) was voted to become new Charlotte Mayor Pro Tem.
Cannon also served as Mayor Pro Tem with former Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory.
Oh well I guess the Democratic process doesn't mean anything to Charlotte Voters.
In other "We the people" doesn't mean squat to Charlotte City Council members.
Folks I urge you to remember how your voice didn't count when it times to re-elect a new council in November 2011.
Whatever happened to "We The People?"
With all due respect to terminally ill former Mayor Pro Tem Susan Burgess, she is NOT Ted Kennedy! In fact Mrs. Burgess doesn't even come close!
If Charlotte City Council members have already decided to select Susan's son Jason, will it hurt them to at least give the other 23 applicants a fair chance or hear them out?
Apparent misuse of the process to replace a Charlotte City Council member stinks to high heaven!
I can hardly wait until 2011 when current council members (most of them) will hopefully be voted out. Unless of course those Straight Ticket Voters from Beatties Ford rd keeps these "Political Dictators" in public office for another decade.
Let us pray people. Let us pray.
Check out the video and article below which reveals that Jason Burgess may indeed be stepping in to fill her dying mother's shoes regardless of what Charlotte Voters want.
Here's a word to the wise: Vote Responsibly in 2011!
The Charlotte City Council will decide tonight who will replace Mayor Pro Tem Susan Burgess.
Burgess has been battling cancer for more than three years and is currently in hospice care. She resigned from her position last week.
Burgess has told council members she would like her son, Jason, to fill her seat until her term is over in 2011.
According to city law, Burgess' replacement must be at least 21 years old, must be from the same political party -- a Democrat -- and must live within city limits.
At least two dozen other people have submitted applications for the spot.
Councilmember Andy Dulin told NewsChannel 36 he wants to make sure everyone who submitted an application is given a fair chance to take the spot.
"My suggestion to the council tonight, and I hope they listen to me, is that we delay for one week and we give the 24 that signed up to replace her the opportunity to come down for comment just like we've always done before," Dulin said.
Dulin said if the council votes tonight, it appears that Burgess' son will get the votes needed to fill her seat.
The vote against a formal reprimand came one week after council learned five different women had accused Turner of making sexually inappropriate remarks.
"I find it hard to believe that all of these people are lying," council member Michael Barnes said as city leaders considered a motion to censure Turner. "I don’t like anything I’ve been hearing. I don’t think this censure is enough. I wish we could do more."
Barnes, along with council members Nancy Carter and Susan Burgess voted to censure Turner.
Turner was recused from the vote and council member Edwin Peacock had been excused from the meeting earlier in the evening.
Council member Andy Dulin said he had not seen any conclusive evidence of misconduct.
"It doesn’t make sense to me for us to be jumping to this conclusion of his guilt," Dulin told council. "There’s been no proof, there’s been no trial, there’s been no rebuttal."
Attorney Valecia McDowell of law firm Moore and Van Allen was hired by the city in March to investigate allegations of sexual harassment made against Turner.
At a meeting last week, McDowell released the results of her month-long investigation.
She said the city's director of human resources began documenting the claims against Turner in September 2008.
The employee later accused Turner of commenting to another council member that he thought the she was a lesbian and he was surprised she was engaged to a man.
In a third encounter, the employee said Turner grabbed her sweater, touching her inappropriately.
Three other female employees had also made harassment complaints against the councilman, McDowell said.
One woman, who traveled with Turner and other city employees and officials to a 2006 conference in Reno, Nevada, said the councilman made a sexually suggestive remark to her as they passed by a display of pornographic materials.
The two other accusers declined to specify where and when the alleged harassment occurred, McDowell said, fearing such details would identify them and could lead to retribution.
Monday evening, in his first formal response to the allegations, Turner said McDowell's report was "filled with untruths, half-truths and inconsistencies."
"At no time have I ever made any sexually explicit comments,any subtle sexual comments, any sexual gestures, or any sexual contact or any physical contact with any of these employees listed in this report or to any other individual in a professional work environment," Turner told council members.
The alleged misconduct by a council member first came to light in early March when Mayor Anthony Foxx sent out an e-mail to all council members, cautioning them against incidents of sexual harassment, saying that kind of conduct would not be tolerated.
The e-mail did not name any names, causing some male members to complain that they were all suspects. The city decided that hiring an outside investigator was the best way to learn what did or did not happen.
A fifth woman, a cadet who attended the city's police academy with Turner in 1988, also claimed harassment, according to McDowell's report.
Turner, who was 24 years-old at the time, was later fired by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.
"My termination had absolutely nothing to with sexual harassment," Turner said Monday. "I was charged with threatening a cadet. I was charged because that cadet stepped onto my feet twice. And she asked me what are you going to do about it?"
A council member since 2003, Turner said he has faced "humiliation and unfairness" since the allegations were first made public.
The N.C. Department of Correction, which employs Charlotte City Council member Warren Turner as a Probation Officer, said Tuesday it won't release a list of Probationers whom Turner has supervised, which the Charlotte Observer had requested.
The department said it is conducting an "initial review" of the City of Charlotte's report released Monday that detailed Sexual Harassment allegations by five women that Turner made sexually inappropriate comments toward them.
According to the report, two of the employees told other city officials they didn't want to be alone with Turner. The report said Turner had been "involuntarily terminated" from the Charlotte Police Academy in 1988 after he physically threatened a female cadet and made "repeated" sexually inappropriate comments toward her.
A year after Turner was terminated from the academy, he was hired by the state as a probation officer, supervising men and women on probation.
"Warren Turner occupies a position of authority and we take that very seriously," wrote Pamela Walker, the DOC director of external affairs, in an e-mail.
Turner has said he hasn't done anything wrong and denied the allegations in the investigation. The report, however, concluded that Turner had been "less than fully truthful" during the probe.
Walker said the DOC might decide to release Turner's personnel file, which the Observer also requested. But any list of probationers won't be made public, Walker said.
The DOC wrote in an e-mail Friday that "people who are no longer on probation have a fair expectation of privacy."
The department wrote that "for those that are currently on probation and doing well, making them subject to news media questions about their supervising officer puts them in a difficult position."
Walker said N.C. law allows the state to release a list of probationers "when (Correction Secretary Alvin Keller) feels it is in the interest of public safety. The offender list does not apply in this case."
State statute says that "all information and data obtained in the discharge of official duty by a probation officer shall be privileged information ... and shall not be disclosed ... unless ... ordered by a judge of the court or the Secretary of Correction."
The Observer hasn't requested any information relating to Turner's files on probationers, only a list of people he has supervised. It is a public record in North Carolina when a person is on probation.
Turner declined to comment Tuesday when contacted by the Observer.
In an interview with WBTV Tuesday, Turner said he has been in contact with the Department of Correction about the report and that the investigation "smeared" his name.
Monday's report was spurred by a female city staff member known in the report as Employee A, who complained that on Dec. 14, 2009, Turner pulled on her sweater at waist level when she was leaving fellow council member James Mitchell's office.
When interviewed by the investigators, Mitchell said he didn't remember Turner grabbing the employee's clothing, the report said. Mitchell also told an investigator he didn't telephone her a day or two later to apologize for Turner's behavior, as the employee said.
The employee had complained two other times about Turner making what she considered inappropriate comments to her in 2008, the report said. That year she told her supervisor, known as Employee B, that she didn't want to be alone with Turner.
Four other female employees, including Employee B and the former police cadet, told an investigator that Turner had made sexually inappropriate comments toward them.
Employee B said she witnessed Turner make sexually inappropriate comments on more than one occasion, according to the report. Once, during a National League of Cities meeting in Reno, Nevada, in 2006, she and Turner were walking through a casino. She said Turner made a sexually explicit comment to her as they passed a store displaying pornographic magazines, the report said.
Employee B later had a meeting with City Attorney Mac McCarley and then-City Manager Pam Syfert. McCarley told investigators that she didn't want to be alone with Turner and asked that a male staff member attend future trips.
McCarley said Monday night he didn't confront Turner because the employees had requested that no formal action be taken.
Pat McCrory, who was mayor for 14 years until December 2009, said he had "no idea" about the complaints about Turner.
"I didn't know anything about this," McCrory said Tuesday. "This is complete news to me."
McCrory wasn't interviewed by Moore & Van Allen, the law firm the council hired to investigate the matter. McCrory works at the law firm, and was "walled off" from the investigation, according to McCarley.
When asked Tuesday whether Charlotte City staff should have confronted Turner sooner, Mayor Anthony Foxx said, "Yes. There's no question about it."
Foxx, who was elected to the City Council in 2005, said he hadn't heard anything about such incidents before he became mayor.
After Turner allegedly pulled on Employee A's sweater, the employee complained to her supervisor and City Manager Curt Walton. The supervisor then talked to Human Resources Director Tim Mayes, who said: "I can't sit on this even if (the employee) doesn't want to go forward."
Mayes and Foxx discussed the allegation, and Foxx sent an e-mail in March to all 11 council members warning them not to sexually harass staff. It prompted intense speculation, and led to the council hiring Moore & Van Allen.
Valecia McDowell of Moore & Van Allen read the report Monday night. Council members could vote to censure Turner, though the city's policy against sexual harassment doesn't apply to council members. That means Turner can't be suspended or removed from office.
Turner told council members Monday he would respond to the report, though he didn't say when.
Much of the discussion Monday night was not about the allegations in the report, but about Foxx's decision to send an e-mail to council members. Republican Edwin Peacock asked Foxx, a Democrat, several times why the issue wasn't handled privately.
Said Peacock: "Where do we go from here after this? Where do we go to work with one another?"
Foxx said that he had asked that Walton, McCarley and other officials have a meeting with Turner, though they declined. Walton has said he didn't feel comfortable with such a meeting because the council is responsible for hiring the city manager.
Foxx said Walton then asked Foxx to address the problem before an upcoming council trip to Washington in March.
"I acted," Foxx said.
Democrat Michael Barnes, who is running for Mecklenburg District Attorney, defended Foxx's handling of the situation. He said the city would have been criticized if it attempted to investigate the situation in closed session.
"You can't expect us to deal with this privately," Barnes said Monday. "There was no reasonable set of options that would have allowed (Foxx) to privately deal with this."
Foxx sent a memo Tuesday afternoon to council members stating he was forming an ad hoc City Council Ethics Review Policy Committee to consider, among a number of issues, whether the existing sexual harassment policy should be applicable to City Council members.
What's even more disturbing is due to how this situation was mishandled by Mayor Anthony Foxx and Curt Walton (City Manager), Turner may have just cause to sue for Defamation of Character.
(You can read the full Investigative report results on PDF file here at this link.)
Results of this $35,000 report provide juicy details about how Turner has been Harassing Women in the Workplace since 1988.
How was Warren Turner able to get away with this horrible behavior for so many years?
Turner is an "Uncle Tom" previously protected by White North Carolina officials and Elite Black friends.
You know sort of like how Mayor Anthony Foxx tried to do when he sent that lame e-mail warning Charlotte City Council members "Sexual Harassment will not be Tolerated".
Please!
That was just a "smoke & mirrors", Cover up gimmick.
No doubt when the Charlotte City Council voted to hire a Private Investigator at $35,000 a pop, they probably thought it would uncover dirt on the Accuser.
Boy were they shocked when the report revealed otherwise!
5 Female employees who work for the City of Charlotte (mainly African-Americans) squealed on him and accused him of Sexual Harassment.
In addition it was reported he repeated similar behavior years ago while a Cadet at Charlotte's Police Academy.
This dirty scumbag who is also Married, was creeping on the side with his Female co-workers and Subordinates.
Don't be surprised because I warned you about what type of person Warren Turner was via a post I published last Fall entitled: "Warren Turner Absentee Politician".
This is an elected official (I've never voted for Warren Turner) who spent $10,000. last year on what he claims were "City Council related Business Trips".
Yeah I bet!
This is an elected official who treats the Black Constituents in his district (Southwest Charlotte) like dirt and does NOTHING to help improve the Quality of Life for them.
Especially for people who reside on Arrow wood and Nations Ford rds.
I'm talking NOT much Economic Development. (for Black Business Owners)
Very few Sidewalks, No Beauty, No Parks, No Neighborhood Revitalization, Terrible Segregated Schools, etc.,
Just mainly Blight, High Crime, Poverty and Ugliness.
In fact there are ONLY two positive things about Southwest Charlotte (Arrow wood rd and Nation Ford rd sections):
1) Access to the Light Rail (thanks to former Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory)
And...
2) Victory Christian Center Church (a Ministry of Integrity) - which creates Jobs, provides Financial help & Tutoring for Charlotte's Underprivileged Youth, Helps to prevent Homelessness in coordination with Charlotte's Salvation Army and operates a successful Accredited School & Community College.
That's It Folks!
Other than that Southwest Charlotte (Arrow wood rd and Nations Ford rd sections) doesn't have much going for it.
If you think I'm exaggerating just drive through that area of Charlotte-Mecklenburg and tell me what you see.
As I stated above: NOT much Economic Development. (for Black Business Owners)
Very few Sidewalks, No Beauty, No Parks, No Neighborhood Revitalization, Terrible Segregated Schools, etc.,
Just mainly Blight, High Crime, Poverty and Ugliness.
I believe its due to Political backlash but I'll discuss that topic on another day.
Warren Turner is a Slimeball and needs to be thrown out of office on his bald head.
However Turner isn't the only elected official who more than likely won't be returning to Public Office that is unless...
Stupid Straight Ticket Voters who don't read what issues Political Candidates support before continuing to elect them.
One more thing....
Did I mention Mayor Anthony Foxx cried upon learning the results of Warren Turner's Sexually Harassment Investigation?
Yeah he sniffed a little while trying to hold back tears, why?
Because upon hearing results of the Investigation Foxx realized he messed up BIG time!
I bet he now wished the City of Charlotte's Human Resource Department had handled this situation.
Guess that Law degree didn't teach Anthony Foxx common sense as it relates to Employment Law and Personnel Matters.
Mr. John Lassiter, Anthony Foxx's Republican Mayoral challenger would have known this and NOT stuck his nose in this mess!
Well "Uncle" Foxx that's what you get for thinking only White people have real Intelligence.
Isn't John Lassiter Caucasian?
Yes he is but don't get it twisted!
Lassiter's ethnicity doesn't make him smarter about handling such sensitive matters.
Instead his more than 20 years of Small Business Experience makes him smarter about such matters.
Which is the reason why I voted for John Lassiter.
You see folks the bigger someone is, the harder they can fall.
Just because Charlotte City Council members claim they have no policy to discipline elected officials, NONE of that matters when it comes to Sexual Harassment.
Sexual Harassment complaints are protected by Federal Law under Title VII. (EEOC)
Since Turner is a State of North Carolina employee (Probation Officer) he can still be heavily reprimanded, even up to Termination for demonstrating such despicable, Illegal behavior in the Workplace.
I smell a HUGE Lawsuit brewing: Racial Discrimination and Sexual Harassment.
Both are protected from Retaliation by Federal Law. (EEOC)
In case your wondering Warren Turner is also NOT the elected Charlotte Politician currently serving in Public Office I'm closely blood-related to but your guesses are getting warmer.
Oh well, we can't choose our blood relatives whether we wish to claim them or not right?
Check out all videos (above & below) and articles below to learn more more about how this sad saga most certainly spells the end of Warren Turner's Political career.
Five Charlotte City employees told an investigator that Charlotte City Council member Warren Turner made sexually inappropriate comments to them, including a female staffer whose complaint sparked the probe, according to a report released Monday night.
Turner, who attended the dinner meeting when the report was read, told investigators he didn't do anything wrong. He said Monday night he would have a detailed response in the future.
Turner, a Democrat who has represented west Charlotte since 2003, is also a state probation officer.
Turner once tried to become a police officer, but he was "involuntarily terminated" from the Charlotte Police Academy in 1988, according to the report. A female cadet said Turner "repeatedly" made sexually inappropriate comments to her, and then later physically threatened her, the report said.
The highly unusual investigation of a council member could lead to the council censuring Turner, as some members discussed. But the city's policy against sexual harassment doesn't apply to elected officials, meaning Turner can't be removed from office or suspended.
The female employee whose complaint touched off the probe -- who is not the former cadet -- told investigator Valecia McDowell that on Dec. 14 of last year that she met with Turner in council member James Mitchell's office.
She said that Turner had been looking for her, and when she asked if he needed anything, she said Turner said: "I just wanted to make sure you were doing your job."
The female staff member, known in the report as Employee A, told the investigator that as she was leaving the office, Turner pulled at her sweater at waist level.
Afterward, she said, Mitchell called her and said what Turner had done was "inappropriate."
Mitchell, who told investigators he is "very close" with Turner, told McDowell he didn't say that and doesn't remember Turner touching the employee's clothing.
Soon after, the female employee told City Manager Curt Walton and another city employee about the incident. The employee then met with the city's human resources director, Tim Mayes, though she said she didn't want to make a formal complaint.
According to the report, Mayes told the employee: "I can't sit on this even if (Employee A) doesn't want to go forward."
Mayes then discussed the situation with Mayor Anthony Foxx, who was unsure how to handle the allegation, according to the report.
In March, Walton asked Foxx to address the allegation because there was an upcoming National League of Cities meeting that Turner and the employee would both be attending.
On March 14, Foxx sent an e-mail to all 11 council members warning them not to sexually harass city staff. The e-mail prompted the council to investigate.
McDowell, an attorney with the law firm Moore & Van Allen, interviewed 18 people. She said the probe will likely cost the city $35,000.
She wrote that "there is sufficient evidence" to support a finding that Council Member Turner made unwanted sexual and gender-related comments to and about Employee A.
After McDowell read her report, Republican Edwin Peacock criticized how Foxx, a Democrat, handled the situation by sending the e-mail.
Peacock said Foxx and city staff should have handled the issue with a private meeting.
Foxx was visibly upset when he defended how he handled the allegation.
"I think you are reaching, frankly," Foxx said:
"This is Monday morning quarterbacking. There is one mayor of the city, exactly one person who had this thrust on his lap. I dealt with it. I have a five-year-old daughter. I want her to grow up in a world where she can go to work. That's what was behind it."
The staff member who said Turner grabbed at her clothing also said Turner made other unwelcome comments.
In February 2008, the staff member said Turner stopped in her office. He asked the staff member about a mug on her desk that had a photo of the actor Shemar Moore.
Turner asked whose photo was on the mug, and the employee said, "That's my motivation!"
Turner then said, according to the employee, "You don't need that, I should be your motivation. You need a real man to be your motivation!"
The employee then said Turner asked where she went undergraduate and graduate school, and Turner then said: "See, that's your problem right there: they don't have any real men at those schools! Your real motivation is right here."
Turner told investigators that he didn't say those things.
The female employee told her supervisor about the comments, and also discussed the incident with McCarley and human resources director Tim Mayes, according to the report.
The employee said that in September 2008, Turner met her fiance, and then later said to her: "I need to know who would marry you! He needs to come and talk to me so I can give him advice on how to deal with you!"
McDowell also interviewed other city staff members, and asked if they had witnessed any council member speak inappropriately.
The only council member who was identified as behaving inappropriately was Turner.
One female employee, described in the report as Employee B, said that on a 2006 trip to Reno, Turner made a sexually explicit comment to her as they passed a hotel store
displaying pornographic magazines. The employee told investigators that she worked to avoid being alone with Turner.
Turner told the investigators he never made any such comments.
Another female employee, described as Employee C, said Turner made sexually inappropriate comments to her more than once.
She said she didn't want to disclose the comments because she felt they might identify her.
A female employee described as D, said she had heard about Turner's inappropriate comments from other female staff members, and that Turner had once approached her and said: "If I wasn't married," The employee then said she cut him off.
The investigators interviewed an employee of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, who was in the Charlotte Police Academy with Turner in 1988.
The former police cadet told investigators that Turner made "repeated sexually inappropriate comments" while they were in the academy.
Turner told investigators that he resigned from the academy before graduating because he had a ticket for an expired automobile tag and because he had physically threatened a cadet. He said he hadn't made sexually inappropriate comments.
The investigators, however, reviewed Turner's employment records and found he was "involuntarily terminated" from the Charlotte Police Department.
The report said that it "appears Council Member Turner was less than fully truthful when responding to questions."
The report said it found that Employee A's comments appear "to be credible and consistent, especially when viewed in light of the substantial number of unrelated but factually similar incidents recounted by other witnesses."
The investigation wasn't tasked with verifying the accounts of other staff members; they were included as supporting witnesses to Employee A's claims.
Attorney Valecia McDowell on Monday delivered a 20-page report detailing her investigation into allegations of inappropriate conduct by a city council member.
McDowell, an attorney with the law firm Moore & Van Allen, interviewed 18 people. She said the probe, which focused on Councilman Warren Turner, will likely cost the city $35,000.
McDowell wrote that it appeared at times during the investigation that Turner "was less than fully truthful when responding to questions from the investigative team."
She also found it "especially troubling" that Turner asked a female city employee about her involvement in the investigation as it was under way.
Charlotte City Council member Warren Turner, now at the center of a sexual harassment investigation, withdrew from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Academy in 1988 after internal affairs investigated allegations that he verbally harassed a female recruit, according to three people with knowledge of the situation.
Turner, 46, entered the Charlotte Police Academy in August 1988 and left on Dec. 1, about two weeks before graduation. In 2007, when Turner sought the Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Sheriff's position, he said he left the academy because of a "dispute over policy."
Internal affairs interviewed some members of the class who sat near Turner and the female recruit, asking them about allegations that Turner had verbally harassed the woman, according to two recruits of that class who were interviewed by internal affairs.
Later, during an academy class, Turner threatened the female recruit, according to a source who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the situation. That occurred when recruits were having their class photos taken, the source said.
Turner said Thursday "there is no truth to that." Asked why he left the academy, Turner said: "I have the right to leave, or quit, just like everyone else."
Turner's attorney, Eric Montgomery, said it would be a "grave mischaracterization" to say Turner had sexually harassed a recruit.
Asked if Turner had threatened a female recruit, Montgomery said he and Turner didn't have a comment.
"He doesn't want to get into those details," Montgomery said. "Those are private personnel matters."
Montgomery also said Turner resigned from the academy; he was not dismissed.
Turner has been a state probation officer for about 20 years, Montgomery said.
Probation officers, who have arrest powers and are allowed to carry guns, were required two decades ago to have a four-year degree in criminal justice or a related field.
They also had to have one or two years of experience in criminal justice or a related field. They had to pass a physical and drug and psychological screenings.
The City of Charlotte said it couldn't comment on Turner's stay at the academy, other than to give the dates he entered and left. City spokesperson Kim McMillan said the city wouldn't comment due to the state's privacy laws concerning personnel records of employees and on the city attorney's advice.
Craig Huneycutt, who headed the CMPD academy in the fall of 1988 and is now retired, said he has only a "vague recollection" of allegations against Turner. Sam Killman, who was the CMPD chief in 1988, said he doesn't remember any incident involving Turner.
Former CMPD officer Paul Taylor, of Clover S.C., who was in Turner's academy class, said he didn't think Turner did anything wrong. He declined to say if he was interviewed by internal affairs, and to discuss the allegations further.
Turner, a Democrat, was elected to the City Council in 2003. He represents District 3, which covers much of west Charlotte.
The city last week hired attorney Valecia McDowell of the law firm Moore & Van Allen to investigate whether a council member sexually harassed a female staff member.
McDowell is reportedly interviewing at least a dozen elected officials and staff members. Her report will be released in mid-April.
Turner has said repeatedly that he didn't do anything wrong and that no one from the city came to him to discuss the allegation. He has said the investigation is a waste of time and money, and could leave the city vulnerable to a lawsuit.
On March 14, Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx sent an e-mail to all 11 city council members telling them that "sexual harassment ... would not be tolerated."
The e-mail was sent after a female city staff member complained about Turner, according to three city officials with knowledge of the situation.
Human Resources director Tim Mayes told council members last week that an employee came to him with a complaint. He said the employee didn't wish to make a formal complaint, but wanted to alert him. Mayes said he took notes about the complaint.
City Manager Curt Walton then asked Foxx to address council members about the allegation. Foxx said he wanted to have a meeting with city staff and the council member about the allegation, but Walton didn't feel comfortable with that.
Walton said he didn't want to discuss the allegation with a council member because Walton is supervised by the council.
At a budget workshop on March 24, six council members voted to hire an outside investigator. Republican council member Edwin Peacock had proposed instead that Turner and his attorney meet with Walton, Foxx, Mayes and City Attorney Mac McCarley, but that motion was defeated.
In 2007, Turner sought to succeed Mecklenburg County Sheriff Jim Pendergraph, who took a Department of Homeland Security job in Washington, D.C. Mecklenburg commissioners chose Chipp Bailey. During the campaign to replace Pendergraph, questions arose about Turner's departure from the police academy, which he dismissed as a policy dispute.
In addition City Council members are now spending $250. per hour on an outside Private Investigator.
Anthony Foxx constantly harps on about how Charlotte is broke yet he's spending $250. per hour on an outside Private Investigator just to make the victim look bad and to deter a potential lawsuit.
Continue reading to learn how Mayor Anthony Foxx & the Charlotte City Council screwed up what could have been a clean, quiet investigation handled by EEOC & Human Resources Dept. professionals.
Just for the record a Sexual Harassment Complaint doesn't have to be in writing to require an Investigation.
Once an employee approaches a Supervisor or Human Resource Professional and verbally alerts them of the situation, it is at that moment considered a Formal Complaint.
Too bad our elected "dummies" (Charlotte City Council members) didn't already know this.
Now I hope you understand why Charlotte, NC will NEVER trump Atlanta or any other large Metro City.
If Charlotte's so-called "Leaders" can't take care of a Sexual Harassment Complaint without Corrupting the legal process, than how in the world can they accurately and fairly manage Charlotte's future growth?
Idiots!
Here's a tip for Charlotte's "Leaders":
Stop the Corruption & Inequality than perhaps you'll be able to prove yourselves worthy of real Leadership.
Read on & check out the videos I've embedded to support this post.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg's Leaders, including so-called Arrogant Black "Leaders" treat their Black Constituents like dirt, with the exception of individuals who are Fraternity/Sorority friends of those Black "Leaders".
Per Newsweek magazine the State of North Carolina has a long history of intentionally mishandling Sexual Harassment, Sexual Assault & Murder cases when the victims are Black Women.
If the victim in this case had been White Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx would have the accused person's (Warren Turner) head chopped off. (I jest)
Isn't Anthony Foxx Black too you ask?
That doesn't matter, he's just a scared Token and a puppet with "no real teeth" or power.
Foxx relies too heavily on Charlotte's "Good Ole Boy" system, allowing himself to be pushed and pulled by Charlotte's White Leaders (like Susan Burgess, Hugh McColl & Mac McCarley).
Because Anthony Foxx was raised in the South (Charlotte) he believes only White Leadership possesses real intellect.
I'd say this incident of trying to hide or cover up a Sexual Harassment complaint, further proves Anthony Foxx is Charlotte's wrong choice of Leader for this region.
(I didn't vote for Foxx during Charlotte's last Mayoral election. Thank goodness!)
In fact we actually need a whole new City Council.
Turner has only been accused of Sexual Harassment by a Female City of Charlotte employee but apparently his buddy Mayor Anthony Foxx is attempting to cover up for him by trying to block the Investigation.
I don't know about you but doesn't this appear as if both Warren Turner and Anthony Foxx are trying to cover up this possible incident, destroy the woman's character, frighten her into being quiet or all three?
Destroying a victim's Character seems to be Anthony Foxx's regular defense style.
In fact the entire City Council recently voted to hire a Private Investigator. no doubt only for the purpose of destroying the victim's reputation and Character.
Who was included in the voting process?
Accused Member Warren Turner!
Can you believe it??
Shouldn't Turner have recused himself from the voting process on this issue?
There are different examples of Sexual Harassment with the most common being Quid Pro Quo, a Latin phrase which means "This for That".
The other most common form of Sexual Harassment usually involves Sexually Offensive Behavior.
So which was it?
Probably Quid Pro Quo as in you scratch my ball head (Turner) and I'll rub your back (the victim).
Wait a minute!
Last time I checked aren't Sexual Harassment complaints protected by the Federal Gov't?
A Sexual Harassment Complaint doesn't have to be in writing to require an Investigation.
Once an employee approaches a Supervisor or Human Resource Professional and verbally alerts them of the situation, it is at that moment considered a Formal Complaint.
If a victim's Employer refuses to comply with Federal Law, the victim can bypass their Employer and file a Sexual Harassment Complaint with the U.S. EEOC's Office directly.
However two of Charlotte's elected "dummies" (Foxx & Turner) somehow foolishly believe they don't have to comply with Federal Law (EEOC) as it relates to properly handling an incident involving Sexual Harassment.
Isn't Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx an Attorney by trade?
Well doesn't he know interfering with a Sexual Harassment complaint for the purpose of covering it up constitutes as a Violation of Federal Law?
I suggest these elected "dummies" (Foxx & Turner) attend Workshops on up-to-date Sexual Harassment Laws.
After all how can you manage an entire City if you aren't knowledgeable about Sexual Harassment and Federal Laws related to Sexual Harassment??
Former Charlotte Pat McCrory would NEVER have done something so Incompetent as attempting to cover up a Sexual Harassment complaint or block an Investigation.
Instead Pat McCrory would have allowed the City of Charlotte's Human Resource Dept and the City's EEOC Dept. to handle such a sensitive matter.
Perhaps Mac McCauley (City of Charlotte's lying Attorney) needs to STOP incorrectly interpreting Laws just to please Charlotte City Council Members (Job Preservation) and really apply the Law as it stands per U.S. Supreme Court Cases.
This is why we need to get rid of our current City Council members and vote in new people who won't be afraid to hire a New City Attorney & New City Manager.
However I'm not surprised about Warren Turner.
He's an Arrogant, Absentee City Council Member who treats his Southwest Charlotte Constituents who reside in the Nations Ford, Arrow wood and Old Pineville road communities like dirt!
Hopefully this dirty expose' on Warren Turner finally means the end of his Political Career, than Southwest Charlotte constituents can vote into Public Office a real district Representative.
One who won't intentionally ignore residents who reside in the Nations Ford, Arrow wood and Old Pineville road communities.
Maybe this Sexual Harassment Investigation against Turner is payback.
As they say in the South "God doesn't like ugly".
Hmmm.
Seems Charlotte has become the new "Dirty South" with all these Corruption Cover Ups.
In case you weren't aware Charlotte's so-called Black "Leaders" are notorious for Cover Ups when it comes to their Family & Fraternity/Sorority associates.
I also predict Mayor Anthony Foxx will ONLY be a one-term Mayor after this stupid legal screw up.
It doesn't pay to be Arrogant and Slick.
Stay tuned.
Check out Anthony Foxx's attempted Cover Up via the video, Anthony Foxx's & Patrick Cannon's e-mails and the articles below which helps to further prove this is just another Cover Up.
Last night, we reached unanimous agreement to place on our April 12, 2010 agenda a discussion and vote on whether to initiate a third party investigation. In order to expedite this process, I will exercise my discretion to place this matter at the end of tomorrow's budget workshop agenda.
If the City Council votes in favor of moving forward, this investigation will begin immediately instead of three weeks from now. In addition to the investigation, the action will suggest a review and update of our ethics policies and procedures to ensure that we have clear steps to manage any alleged incidents of misconduct in the future.
I want to thank all of you for cooperating with the process outlined on Thursday and led by Mayor Pro Tem Susan Burgess. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Several Charlotte City Council members want to see a policy crafted regarding sexual harassment and the city's elected officials in the wake of an allegation of harassment against a council member.
That allegation was made informally, according to City Manager Curt Walton, and became public after Mayor Anthony Foxx e-mailed the city council members with a reminder not to engage "in any form of sexual harassment towards them."
Walton said no formal complaint was filed. City Attorney DeWitt "Mac" McCarley has said the matter was therefore considered closed.
The city of Charlotte does have a formal policy against harassment for employees of City Manager Curt Walton, but elected officials are not considered city staff.
In an e-mail to other council members obtained by NewsChannel 36 under the NC Open Records Act, councilman Patrick Cannon wrote, "We have discovered that indeed there is no such ordinance that governs elected officials. It's my thought that we as officials are not above the law and should be subjected to the same regulations regarding harassment as the next individual."
Cannon goes on to suggest that council adopt the city's policies against sexual harassment.
Mayor Foxx responded, "The city manager adopted procedures would place staff and council members in an odd spot. If we were to apply those procedures to the city council and if a formal complaint against either is ever filed, staff would be required to investigate and potentially discipline an elected official."
"We're being very intentional to create a process that will be useful in the future," Councilmember Nancy Carter said Tuesday.
"I'm just going to say, for the record, it ain't me. I'm not engaged in this," Cannon said at the city council meeting Monday night, echoing the comments of other city leaders to reporters in recent days. He said, "There is a gray cloud over all the heads" of male council members.
Susan Burgess suggested that city council hire an outside investigator to look into the allegation.
Because the outside investigation was not previously on the agenda for Monday's council meeting, Burgess needed a unanimous vote to have a formal discussion.
Council member Warren Turner blocked immediate action, calling the inquiry "a waste of the taxpayer's money."
In a later interview, Turner said he was not trying to hide anything, but felt the investigation could result in a lawsuit if the employee who made the claim is inadvertently identified.
"I think we very well could be violating people's privacy," Turner told NewsChannel 36. "If they had a private conversation with an individual that did not file a complaint, then it should remain in that context."
Turner later voted with the rest of council to discuss the outside investigation at a meeting on April 12.
City staff and council members have repeatedly emphasized that no formal complaint was ever filed on the matter.
Jenny Sharpe, a Charlotte attorney with a specialty in sexual harassment law, said that should not matter in this case. "There is no distinction between a verbal complaint and a written complaint."
However, Sharpe said she believes the mayor's e-mail was effective, legally speaking. She said a formal investigation would close the door on any liability for the city of Charlotte.
"Liability ceases once the harassment stops, so if the employer can show that it has taken prompt and effective remedial action under the circumstances and that there is a cessation of the conduct, then liability ceases for the employer," Sharpe said.
Anthony Foxx's First Sexual Harassment Cover Up E-mail:
Dear City Council Members:
We owe the citizens of Charlotte our very best effort every day, and I appreciate all of you for your investment of time and energy in making our city a better place. The responsibility, of course, extends to our personal treatment of staff as well, including not engaging in any form of sexual harassment towards them. Any such behavior cannot and will not be tolerated by me, our City Council or the public we serve, and I ask you to keep that in mind.
For those of you traveling to Washington D.C. this week, I wish you safe travels and a productive series of meetings with our congressional leaders and others.
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