A version of this news analysis originally appeared in the Inside Politics newsletter, out Fridays. Sign up here to get it first to your inbox.
Interim Charlotte City Attorney Anthony Fox plans to launch an investigation into inflammatory comments City Council member Victoria Watlington made last month about the city’s $305,000 settlement with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings.
But Watlington is continuing to push back. She is uncomfortable with Fox leading the investigation, mostly because many of her negative comments were about how he handled the settlement.
She doesn’t want him investigating himself.
Fox is digging in, refusing to outsource the investigation to a third party. He has called Watlington’s continued obstinacy “not acceptable.”
Here is the background:
In early May, a divided City Council agreed to pay Jennings $305,000 as compensation for threatening text messages he received from former City Council member Tariq Bokhari, who now works in the Trump administration. The two men were feuding over whether police officers should be allowed to wear new protective vests.
Watlington was opposed to the settlement, which was decided in closed session.
Soon after, she wrote an email to constituents titled “Power Corrupts.”
"I have seen enough,” she wrote. “Over the last five and a half years, I have witnessed the brazen disregard for dissenting opinions and the rule of law."
She added, "Never, however, have I seen such an egregious example as what has occurred in the last week."
She also said the city’s decision was "unethical, immoral, and, frankly, illegal."
Hours later, she dialed back her comments, writing in a second email that "my fundamental desire is to operate with truth, transparency, respect and authenticity."
She also clarified to WFAE that she wasn’t speaking about corruption in a literal sense, in terms of people accepting money for favors.
