13 AUG 08: THE WALKERS WALK AWAY

It shaped up to be the trial of the decade in Columbus, with a former sheriff's deputy facing tough questions about his work. But it now appears that trial will not happen in federal court - and I really don't expect all the parties to get together for a reunion show with Tyra Banks.

Nearly five years of tension and division may finally have ended Tuesday, with an 8-0 vote by Columbus Council. It offered a $200,000 city settlement to the family of Kenneth Walker, in exchange for an end to all federal lawsuits. There's nothing to indicate the offer will be turned down - although a few pro football players who staged holdouts this summer probably would have.

The legal settlement with Kenneth Walker's family reportedly took several months to finalize. In fact, former mayor Bob Poydasheff told WRBL he tried to work out a settlement while he was in office. Add that to the 2006 election and the sales tax vote, and Jim Wetherington now leads Poydasheff 3-0.

In fact, we should have guessed a settlement announcement was coming. Kenneth Walker's mother Emily had become rather quiet in recent months. I think her regular place in line to speak at Columbus Council meetings now has been replaced by Jeremy Hobbs.

The payment to the Walker family actually will total more than $200,000. Mayor Jim Wetherington said anonymous donors have offered even more money, to go into a fund for Kenneth Walker's daughter. The family's lawyers may have to wait until she's 18, to ask about their legal fees.

A statement read by Mayor Wetherington suggests the $200,000 authorized by Columbus Council was not enough to satisfy the Walker family. The mayor admits he went to former Mayor Frank Martin for help in "raising additional funds from private sources." The Muscogee County School Board might need that list of sources in about six months.

(Isn't it interesting that the Kenneth Walker case ends with the same sort of mystery that it had at the beginning? Muscogee County Sheriff Ralph Johnson refused to name the deputy who shot Walker for weeks. Now the only people who may know who gave anonymous donations may be nameless paper-pushers at the Internal Revenue Service.)

This settlement brought to mind a "Kenny Walker Fund" which was organized three years ago [8 Jul 05]. The main goal of that fund was to pay legal expenses. I never heard if that drive was successful - but at least the money didn't stop one-time Walker family lawyer Bill Campbell from going to prison.

The legal settlement is designed to end all legal action against the city of Columbus for Kenneth Walker's death. It also appears to end the lawsuit against David Glisson, who was a sheriff's deputy when he shot Walker in December 2003. A short campaign of support for Glisson has faded away - and if the Fraternal Order of Police isn't helping you, that's not a good sign.

Has the Kenneth Walker case helped bring Columbus together racially? The Urban League's Reginald Pugh is showing hints of it, with his statement to this blog that he'll personally support Sheriff Ralph Johnson for re-election. But Georgia NAACP President Ed DuBose told WRBL Columbus may always be divided. Until Carver High School is merged with Spencer, at least....

I've heard some people in Columbus say they "moved on" from the Kenneth Walker case a long time ago. Apparently they all work now at WLTZ, which led its evening news Tuesday with results from the Olympics.

So perhaps the most divisive issue of the decade in Columbus may finally be closed -- at least in terms of lawsuits. The loose ends of rumors and speculation may not be resolved until someone writes a sequel to "The Big Eddy Club."

E-MAIL UPDATE: Columbus civil rights activists were united after the shooting of Kenneth Walker, but they now seem to be turning on each other. Monday's exclusive interview with Reginald Pugh of the Urban League brought a follow-up message from a leader of the Grassroots Unity Movement for Change....

Mr. Burkard,

"Austere times" is spin for, "Man did I screw things up."

The emails may not always be directly from me, but if it says GUMC, you can believe they are opinions we all pretty much agree on and support, and if they are made public we stand by them until proven wrong, and if we are proven wrong we are the first to admit we are wrong. That is what we are known for and why we earned the respect we have with the people. When we tell it, we serve it up straight no chaser.

Maybe I am from another planet or solar system than Mr. Pugh, but if you ask people about "HNIC," and they know anything about what you are talking and they are honest with you, they are not going to tell you the "N" means "Negro," and did you really think he was going to tell you something other than what he did? You got to give him some credit for 30% of the vote. As far as "Honorary Negro," Josh probably helped him out with that one by the sound of it.

Pugh claiming "The Unity Movement" has an agenda is quite laughable considering he is the one than ran against Senator Harbison twice because of the heartburn he claims to have about Calvin Symre, Sanford Bishop, Nathan Suber and others telling him he couldn't run at all. I think we all remember his unsubstantiated claims and accusations in an article in the Ledger a few years back, actually the same year he ran against Senator Harbison. BTW, the same year the ethics complaint just happens to come up.

Furthermore, Mr. Pugh approached a member of the GUMC and went as far as try to get the member to meet with Sheriff Ralph Johnson and his supporters behind our backs. Nobody with "The Movement" invited him to come to us, and that is not the first time he approached one of us with, guess what, HIS POLITCAL AGENDA against incumbent democrats and asking for our help in knocking them off. So who has the agenda and who is specializing and promoting DIVISION?

Is it Pugh or Ralph Johnson running for Sheriff or both? Pugh has issues with who people vote for and support when their choices disagree with his political picks. Why would he even say the GUMC has an agenda and then tie that in with his suspicion we support John T. Darr for Sheriff? Our opinions of Pugh, Barnes, and McKoon's shenanigans have to do with their history together in politics and the facts.

And speaking of the dividing, you will not find us engaged in racial division whatsoever. But, likewise, you will never find the GUMC failing to speak its mind and tell the whole truth about any matter at hand. Now if total honesty about an issue or circumstance translates in someone else's mind as DIVISION, then that is a good indication the person has a problem with truth-telling or was probably exposed by the facts.

I had a saying when I would call into "Talkline," back in the day, "If you don't like the truth chances are you really aren't going to like Brother Love at all." You will find that to be a very true statement. The only agenda we have is a better Columbus by urging the grassroots to get more positively involved in our community. Us liking you or agreeing with you on one issue or another in no way abdicates us of our duty to the people. We hit them as hard on the Left as we do on the Right. If you are wrong you are wrong.

If your politics are dirty and your motives questionable, we will first approach the individual or group with our concerns. If they refuse to listen or understand, we let the public know all we know or conclude about you or what you are trying to do based on the facts and the evidence. The people then get to do their own research and draw their own conclusions.

What was said in that GUMC memo is exactly what is being discussed every day in the community. What was shared with you and your readers, I personally have no problem with being forwarded to you. What you got from Reginald Pugh was the usual political double-talk. Maybe that was why he thought he could defeat Senator Harbison in the first place. He thought the voters would not see through his masquerade and double-talk, but they did. The people spoke and spoke in a loud and clear voice at the polls, where it counted most.

Does Pugh stink? You can make an intelligent decision about that for yourself. What we now is what he and his cohorts are involved in certainly smells to high heaven. But if he likes it, we love it and are willing to let him live his own life as he chooses. He has to do what he has to do. And I can certainly promise him the Grassroots Unity Movement for Change will always do what we feel needs to be done.

God bless,

Brother Love

As we noted Monday: if you ask most people in Toronto or Vancouver about HNIC, they will NOT think of racial matters. Not to mention most of the Columbus Cottonmouths hockey team....

Reginald Pugh told me the other night about this sort of criticism: "You don't have to like me, but I only ask you to be truthful." So there's the Pugh view of the truth, Brother Love's view of the truth - and I'm not sure either man would even accept that new FM radio station as "The Truth."

About that guy named Josh: we heard from him Tuesday as well. He chairs the Muscogee County Republican Committee....

Richard,

I see that in your 11 August 2008 blog post there are a number of allegations made by Mr. C.A. Hardmon regarding myself, Councilor Jerry "Pops" Barnes and Reginald Pugh. These allegations are similar to ones I have read in The Courier newspaper that were attributed to the anonymous "Street Committee".

Let me see if I can take these allegations in turn and explain the facts.

First, the idea that Mr. Pugh and/or Councilor Barnes are using the Urban League as a "power base" to unseat elected officials is preposterous. The Urban League is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to enable African Americans to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power and civil rights. The Urban League believes that the best way to achieve that mission is through education, economic empowerment, provision of quality health care, promotion of civil rights and yes, civic engagement. Under Mr. Pugh's leadership, the Urban League of Greater Columbus has become debt-free, has continually expanded its community outreach programs and has been recognized repeatedly as one of the top chapters in the United States. Mr. Pugh, as a professionally trained social worker, has done a wonderful job innovating and bringing great services to our community. A recent example has been the Urban League's partnership with Walgreen's to offer free health screenings to people all over Columbus. Columbus was by far the smallest city on the list that Walgreen's agreed to work with and that is in large part because of Mr. Pugh's leadership. I happen to know Mr. Pugh has been approached about taking the helm of larger chapters but has remained in Columbus because of his commitment to the people here that he and the staff of the Urban League serve every day.

Second, that Councilor Barnes was supported by Republicans. It is true that Councilor Barnes enjoyed the support of Republicans, Democrats and Independents. In fact I think one of his most faithful supporters was Mr. Hardmon himself. I recall at the election night party at Councilor Barnes headquarters that Frank Myers, former Chairman of the Democratic Party in Muscogee County, Ed Dubose, State Chair of the NAACP, Bill Madison, Columbus Chair of the NAACP and Nadine Moore, a local community activist were all present to celebrate the election of Pops Barnes to Council Post 1. Are they the Republicans to which Mr. Hardmon refers? I certainly supported Councilor Barnes and am proud of the work he has done while on City Council, but I think most of the people who voted for him were Democrats. In any case, City Council races are non-partisan. I wonder, does Mr. Hardmon's support of Councilor Barnes in 2006 mean I have a chance of getting him to vote McCain this year?

Third, a great number of elected officials and community leaders, including Councilor Barnes and Mr. Pugh, attended the State Republican Convention when it was held in Columbus last May. Many elected officials and community leaders believe it is important for our community to have good relations with our state leadership, whether it is Republican or Democratic. Simply attending events where the Governor or other elected officials have spoken hardly assumes a party affiliation. My own opinion is that attending such events is smart leadership, as building relationships with our state leadership is often critical to resolve problems facing our community. Would Mr. Hardmon suggest that Republicans that represent our area should shun a future Democratic Governor?

Fourth, I can tell you that Councilor Barnes has never attended any fundraisers or strategy sessions to "bump off Democrats". Councilor Barnes is focused on his work with City Council. I think this suggestion has arisen because of a lunch I had with Councilor Barnes and Mr. Pugh at the River Club a few months ago. Representative Calvin Smyre was there along with some associates and we had a pleasant conversation with them before returning to lunch. Ever since that day, a number of claims have been made that the three of us were meeting to plan some grand strategy. Mr. Hardmon knows me well enough to know that if I wanted to have a meeting of a confidential nature, I would not conduct it in the main dining room of the River Club.

Fifth, this notion that Mr. Pugh does not care about Senate District 15 is equally absurd. Mr. Pugh has shown me in his work with the Urban League that he is terribly concerned with those in our community who are struggling to make ends meet, the children who are being educated in a substandard environment and who have difficulty accessing preventative health care. On a related note, I live in State Senate District 15 and unfortunately we were unable to recruit Republican opposition to Senator Harbison. Mr. Hardmon can check the record to see what ballot I pulled on July 15 and he will see I voted, as always, in the Republican primary. It is very unfortunate that we have a State Senator who it is agreed upon by the staff attorneys of the State Ethics Commission and the Commission itself has repeatedly violated Georgia law. More so that he refuses to acknowledge his breaches of the law. I may have ideological disagreements with the other Democrats that represent Muscogee County, but in the case of Senator Harbison I simply cannot abide someone who is charged with writing our laws to show utter contempt for them when they are inconvenient to comply with for his campaign. The Attorney General has his case now and I have been assured we will have a trial within 6-12 months of this writing.

Sixth, as to the claim that Councilor Barnes, Mr. Pugh and I all attended hearings in Atlanta on Senator Harbison's ethics case, let me set the record straight. There has been, sadly, only one hearing related to Senator Harbison's case. Ms. Kirby rode with me on that occasion to Atlanta. I was present to represent Ms. Kirby as her attorney. Neither Councilor Barnes nor Mr. Pugh were with us. I have traveled to the Capitol on many occasions on many other matters, sometimes in the company of Councilor Barnes.

Seventh, these allegations that the Urban League finances are in trouble or in any way being improperly managed do not hold water. I serve on the Urban League Board as the Secretary. Prior to my service as Secretary I was an at-large Member of the Board of Directors, at the same time that Nathan Suber was Chairman of the Board. Let me make clear that these positions I and others have held are volunteer positions--we receive no compensation for serving, outside of the lunch brought in for Board meetings. The Urban League financials are disclosed at every Board of Directors meeting and while I am not sure I am allowed to reveal details, I can say that during my tenure on the Board that there has been no discernible change in the annual budget income or expenses. The Urban League is subjected to an internal audit, an external audit, an audit by the United Way, and periodic audits by the state and federal government due to the grant money it receives for the various programs it implements in our community. Every audit conducted under Mr. Pugh's tenure has found the Urban League of Greater Columbus is well managed financially and in good financial health. Also, I thought you should know who is involved with the Urban League. The information about the Board of Directors and the Advisory Board may be found here: http://www.columbusurbanleague.org/Directors.htm.

Is Mr. Hardmon suggesting this entire group is engaged in some kind of conspiracy to "cook the books"? I certainly hope not. As I said earlier, the Urban League has a noble mission and I am proud to be a small part of its efforts in Columbus. I certainly hope Mr. Hardmon would not suggest that simply because I am involved with an organization that it is inherently "political". If that is true, I guess he would argue the United Way and the Muscogee County Juvenile Drug Court are also "power bases" from which to launch campaigns for elective office, since I also serve on those boards.

Mr. Hardmon has won a reputation in our community for concern for his fellow man and often provides thoughtful commentary on important issues of our day. That is why I am so surprised to see him put that reputation in jeopardy by engaging in the peddling of such malicious attacks on the basis of rumor, innuendo and idle speculation. I cannot speak for Councilor Barnes or Mr. Pugh, but a simple telephone call to me would have likely resolved all of these falsehoods before they found their way into print. I appreciate the opportunity to respond comprehensively to these and will be happy to answer further questions from Mr. Hardmon or anyone else for that matter.

Regards,

Josh McKoon

That "Street Committee" suggested after the July primary Reginald Pugh shouldn't run for political office again, after two losses to State Senator Ed Harbison. And let's face it, running for Columbus Council would be a challenge -- considering his wife already serves there.

How interesting to learn that Josh McKoon and Frank Myers were at the same victory party for Jerry "Pops" Barnes in 2006. So was this truly a nonpartisan event -- or did McKoon and Myers spend the night on opposite sides of the room?

I hadn't heard about this "power lunch" at the River Club. But come to think of it, why wouldn't that be a place to hold confidential meetings - considering more than 95 percent of Columbus residents probably never have stepped inside it?

And it's also surprising to learn Josh McKoon actually voted in the Republican Primary in July. He sent us so many e-mails against Ed Harbison that we thought he might swap roles with Zell Miller.

I certainly would never consider the juvenile Drug Court to be a "power base" for politics. After all, that court is supposed to be against freebasing....

TODAY'S BLOG OLYMPIC MOMENT: Oops, we blew it -- it turns out Jeffrey Holguin of Fort Benning fell short of an Olympic medal in double trap shooting after all. The results we checked at Tuesday's post time were for the qualifications, and he came in fourth in the final round. So for me, the "double trap" was that second session of shooting on the schedule.

(Glenn Eller from the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit won the Olympic gold medal. His "NBC Olympic" biography doesn't say anything about that unit or Fort Benning -- but it does mention the time in 2000 when Eller developed food poisoning from a ham sandwich. Did they ship any barbecue from Mike and Ed's to Beijing, as a precaution?)

Now for a quick wrap-up of other Tuesday topics....

+ Georgia Congressman Sanford Bishop appeared on WDAK's "Viewpoint," and said the top issue for Congress this fall will be gas prices. Back in Washington, Rep. Lynn Westmoreland wondered why Bishop voted to leave town for a summer recess to figure that out.

+ Jordan High School's head football coach resigned - two weeks before the start of the season. Is George Steinbrenner advising the school's athletic director, or what?!

+ The evening news revealed former Carver quarterback DeRon Furr will move to Memphis, after deciding to leave Auburn University. He'll still be a Tiger at Memphis - only he's moving a Furr piece away.

(Yet DeRon Furr apparently still will play defensive back at Memphis, instead of competing for the quarterback position. You'd think a team that plays at the Liberty Bowl would offer more options than that.)

+ Instant Message to the Redneckin blog in East Alabama: Oops, we blew it again. OK, you use the Citizen newspaper to light your gas grill. We simply couldn't track down your description of the paper - since you called it by the polite name "weekly," instead of your usual "dead tree rag."

(BLOGGER'S NOTE: Because of the major Kenneth Walker news, the topic we planned for today will be postponed until Thursday. But yes, the numbers ARE out....)

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