Durham City Council Conflicts

In her last public meeting as mayor, Elaine O’Neal reopened a wound the Durham City Council had hoped to leave behind.  One council member left the council chambers before things “get violent,” and O’Neal called her choice of second-in-command her “only regret.”

O’Neal, who chose not to run for a second term, said Tuesday she was unwilling to leave office without saying something about how her colleague and friend, Council member Monique Holsey-Hyman, has been treated. She said she hopes the next council will establish clear procedures on how to deal with such matters in the future.  Holsey-Hyman was accused of extortion and campaign finance violations about a year into her appointment. Though investigators found “no evidence” of wrongdoing, the investigation was open for most of the campaign season and Holsey-Hyman lost by more than 10,000 votes.

During Tuesday’s council meeting, member DeDreana Freeman said Mayor Pro Tem Mark-Anthony Middleton had bullied Holsey-Hyman, an accusation that previously led to a shouting match between Freeman and Middleton.  “I can feel myself getting angry just hearing it again,” Freeman said.

Middleton tried to interject, and Freeman’s voice trembled as she began to speak slowly over him.  “I think it would be appropriate to have the conversations with a facilitator because it is not going to work today. I’m going to tell you right now, I’m going to get upset and it’s going to get violent,” Freeman said.  “Are you going to hit me again?” Middleton asked.

“I never hit you! I never hit you in the first place, and the fact that you lie like that and you lie with a straight face as a pastor is disgusting,” Freeman said.  Mayor-elect Leo Williams walked over to whisper in Middleton’s ear as O’Neal attempted to defuse the situation.

“We’re going to do this peacefully. It’s not going to turn into that,” O’Neal said as Freeman packed her things to leave.  The altercation with Freeman that Middleton alluded to happened behind closed doors in late March, and conflicting narratives have been reported about what happened.  An anonymous source told INDY Week that Freeman attempted to strike Middleton, a narrative two of the council members present confirmed to The News & Observer.

O’Neal and Freeman, the other two council members there, have declined to speak with The N&O about the allegations and neither answered phone calls Wednesday. O’Neal has told other outlets that she was not struck.  Middleton said the election results refuted Freeman’s attempt to twist the narrative. Freeman lost a bid for mayor. “It is a lie,” Middleton said. “The people of Durham saw through it and rejected it.”

MAYOR SAYS HOLSEY-HYMAN OWED AN APOLOGY

Holsey-Hyman said she felt hurt by her colleagues, but thanked O’Neal and Freeman for defending her.  “My life, while I have not been perfect, I have prided myself on ethics and integrity,” Holsey-Hyman said. “Every time I came in here was hard. It’s even hard for me now. It was hard for me to try to run a campaign. I couldn’t raise any money, I couldn’t keep a team, because of these allegations.”

Holsey-Hyman said she was led to believe if she resigned, the investigation would go away.   “What was the purpose? What was my lesson in this?” she said resignedly. “I just hope the new council comes on, I hope y’all do different. Because Durham deserves better.”   O’Neal said Holsey-Hyman deserved a formal apology.

“You can’t just leave this lady to leave off this dais after almost watching her life be destroyed,” O’Neal said. “And never saying anything about that or bringing it to closure when you were so quick to punish her.”  Council member Jillian Johnson wrote a censure resolution in March, when the allegations were first made public. It never went to a vote.  Johnson was absent Tuesday, but has previously discussed the matter with The N&O.

“After two council members had a screaming fight and a physical altercation in the chambers, it became hard to justify censuring one council member for an ethical violation and not other council members for clearly more severe conduct,” Johnson said.  Middleton said in a private meeting with O’Neal and “some prominent members” of the community, he agreed not to vote to censure Holsey-Hyman. That’s why the matter was dropped, he said — there wasn’t a majority supporting it.  “I think that if I had worked really hard, I think I could have gotten a vote for a censure (against Freeman), or even worse. But I thought we were doing the humility and kindness and peace thing, so I thought in the best interest of the city, we would just move forward,” Middleton said.

O’Neal said given the situation with Holsey-Hyman, there had to be a way to deal with other allegations against council members.  “It’s not personal. It’s just business,” O’Neal said.  “For some of us, it feels very personal,” Middleton later countered. “It seems there are a group of citizens that have captured the imagination and attention of members of this council to the point where they actually say the same things.”  

Middleton said “12 people with 35 followers on Facebook” repeating a rumor doesn’t make it true.

‘DON’T MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE’

When the council reconvenes in December, Holsey-Hyman and O’Neal will be gone. Middleton and Freeman both have two years left in their terms.  O’Neal ended the meeting by stating her “only regret” was having named Middleton her mayor pro tem, the second in charge.

“I’ve enjoyed working with you all somewhat,” she said, closing her binder with a thud. “I’m glad this chapter is moving on in my life.”  “Don’t make the same mistake, Leo,” O’Neal said finally, as the other members rose to leave in tense silence. “And I mean that.”

“I’ve enjoyed working with you all somewhat,” she said, closing her binder with a thud. “I’m glad this chapter is moving on in my life.”

“Don’t make the same mistake, Leo,” O’Neal said finally, as the other members rose to leave in tense silence. “And I mean that.”