Councilman to sue if removed
By Rochelle Moore
Published in News on April 28, 2018 9:45 PM
Antonio Williams
In the 11th hour, prior to facing removal from the Goldsboro City Council, District 1 Councilman Antonio Williams is threatening to sue the city if he loses his seat for failing to disclose his residency.
The council Wednesday voted 6-0 to give Williams 48 hours to provide two forms of proof -- a driver's license or a cable, electric or water bill -- that verifies he lives in the district he represents.
The deadline came and went Friday at 4:30 p.m., by which time Williams did not provide documentation.
Instead, the council received a letter from attorneys with the Durham-based Southern Coalition for Social Justice threatening legal action.
"... Mr. Williams satisfies all of the statutory requirements to serve as in elected office for Goldsboro District 1, and any efforts to remove him from the office to which he was duly elected would subject the city to litigation," according to the letter.
"If the city intends to proceed in its current course of action and will not work with us to come up with a mutually agreeable solution, we will be forced to pursue a remedy in court."
The council plans to meet at 8 a.m. Monday in the second-floor conference room of the City Hall annex, at 200 N. Center St., to decide its next move.
Mayor Chuck Allen said last week that if Williams did not provide residency verification, then by law he will no longer be a councilman.
"He has not provided the information we required," Allen said Saturday. "He has not turned in anything to substantiate where he lives.
"In my opinion, nothing's changed. If he doesn't produce it, he's not going to be on the council."
Questions surrounding Williams' residency were recently raised by an unsigned letter ---- its return address listed as "Goldsboro, NC District 1 Citizens" ---- to the council this month claiming Williams was no longer a resident of District 1 and asked the council to take action.
The city attorney met with Williams on April 20, at which time Williams declined to provide his address. His last address listed with the Wayne County Board of Elections is 304 Wilmington Ave., but the owner of the property told city officials that Williams no longer lived at the home.
The unanswered questions by Williams resulted in the council taking action, due to concerns raised by the city attorney, including city policy decisions that Williams may have voted on. Any votes Williams has made could be voided if he is not a resident of District 1, city attorney Ron Lawrence said.
The Southern Coalition for Social Justice attorneys claim in the letter sent to the city that Williams has lived in District 1, since 2012. The letter says Williams did not provide an address because he feels threatened by people knowing where he lives.
The letter states that Williams moved from the Wilmington Avenue address due to concerns for his safety following a homicide next door and an increase in crime in the neighborhood.
Also singled out in the letter is Goldsboro Police Chief Mike West. The letter alleges that West, after receiving safety complaints from Williams, failed to provide "meaningful assistance or support."
Williams also alleges through his attorneys that, because in an unrelated matter he suggested the police chief resign, he "believes the police chief is biased against him, will not act to protect him and may act in a manner that may create an unsafe physical environment for Mr. Williams and his family," according to the letter.
Reached for comment on Saturday, West said that he talked with Williams on at least two occasions when he lived on Wilmington Avenue and took action to increase patrols. West said he handled Williams' concerns as he would for any other city resident.
"The police department responded appropriately," West said. "We increased our presence in that area. We do it until we feel we've solved the problem or the threat.
"I'm not aware of Mr. Williams being in fear of his safety.
"Any citizen in Goldsboro that has any concerns for their safety, I and the department will act to quell the concerns that the citizens have."
Williams claims that he does not want to reveal his current address due to other concerns about his safety, including residents of District 1 who were behind the initial letter sent to the city council this month.
The letter states that Williams is living with relatives and that he does not want to reveal his whereabouts.
Allen said the letter only further confirms that Williams could potentially be living out of his district.
According to the State Board of Elections, candidates filing to run for public office are required to file a certificate that verifies where they are registered to vote at their current residential address in the county where they live.
Allen maintains the council is within its rights to enforce the mandate that an elected official must reside in the district he or she represents.
"If he's going to sue, he's going to sue," Allen said.