Buncombe County Government, NC Board of Commissioners' Meetings, 4 Aug 2015

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From YouTube: Board of Commissioners Meeting - August 4, 2015 (Part 2)

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The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners' Regular Meeting from August 4, 2015. This video is part 2 of 2.

Meeting Agenda:
~Call to Order
~Invocation
~Public Comment
~Good News - Proclamation of August as Special Olympics Month in Buncombe County.
~Public Hearing - Request for Refund for Overpayment of Excise Tax
~Public Hearing - Rezoning Request: John J & Brenda Landgrover - R1 to R2
~Public Hearing - Rezoning Request: Charles & Jeremy Arthur - RLD to R2
~Public Hearing - Rezoning Request: Harry & Ricky Coates - Text Amendment
~Closed Session: Discussion of 2 Legal Issues
~New Business - Legal Settlement
~New Business - Solid Waste Franchise
~New Business - Designation of Voting Delegate to the NCACC Annual Conference
~New Business - Resolution Endorsing Initiative to Reduce the Number of People with Mental Illness in Jail
~Board Appointments
~Announcement: August 18 at 4:30PM the Board will meet with the Asheville City Council in the First Floor Conference Room at 200 College St. in downtown Asheville.
~Announcement: August 29 at 11AM a Ribbon Cutting on Lake Julian Trail at Lake Julian Park.
~Announcement: September 1 at 4:30PM the next regular meeting of the Board, held in Room 326 at 200 College St. in downtown Asheville.
~Adjournment

A

The house for mr. Goodwin, you play your cards.

B

Alrighty we have been in closed session. Is there a motion to come out the closed session and reopen our session.

A

B

Been a motion by Commissioner frost second, by Vice, Chair Belcher. Is there any discussion? All those in favor of coming out of closed session back into open session, say aye aye all opposed? No, then we're back into open session by six to 0 vote next matter of business will be the legal settlement. Dr. Greene tell us what this is about and what your recommendations are. Mr.

C

Chairman and commissioners, it really saddens me to be at the podium denied to ask you to take this action and to present this issue. However, on the advice of our attorneys and our insurance carriers, I'm asking you to approve settling five wrongful conviction. Claims from Robert wilcoxon Kenneth cognero teddy is bail, Damien, wilt mills and Larry Williams jr.. The recommendation to settle these cases is is really from our desire to do what is best in the best interest of the county government and its citizens after much much work on these cases.

C

A little bit of history, a murder occurred on sep tember, the eighteenth of two thousand, and these five defendants were charged with first-degree murder. All five defendants plead guilty to second-degree murder, the circumstances that led to their guilty pleas Drake. Please raised many questions about the practices and interview techniques used by former sheriff Bobby Medford. After hundreds of hours of interviews and depositions, it's clear. The actions were inappropriate and a disservice to the defendants, and the criminal justice system has failed. These five men.

C

The innocence Commission found two of the five men innocent and another court action can give the other through me and the option to sue us too. So we're trying to get settle off Bob we're asking that you settle these cases as follows: Robert wilcoxon, five million one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars, Kenneth cognero, five hundred and fifteen thousand dollars, larry williams, jr, seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars teddy is Bell, 240 thousand dollars, Damien Mills, five hundred and twelve thousand two hundred and fifty dollars.

C

The total settlement for these five gentlemen is seven million one hundred forty two thousand two hundred and fifty dollars to date. We have also incurred over seven hundred sixty seven thousand dollars in legal costs, and we do expect additional legal bills to increase that amount.

C

We also do expect to recover about two points from our insurance carriers and will continue to pursue collections. These funds, which will come from our unbalanced, represent around two cents on our tax rate and a budget amendment to make these payments, and we will have to make these payments tomorrow. As part of the recommendation we bring you tonight. Mr. Uhler did a great job working through these cases. The settlement could have could have been as high as forty four million dollars.

C

The initial ask was seventeen million, so settling for seven I think really was an excellent piece of work and there are certainly less than we would have expected from a jury award as I mentioned. This is the last thing. I want to ask any board of commissioners to do. We've been placed in a position by a former employee who had some fairly inappropriate, behavior and interview techniques that resulted on the wrongful conviction incarceration of these five men.

C

Tonight we have to pay the financial price of over eight million dollars, which is the total cost you'll, no doubt to a little over five with the insurance and we'll settle with these men, who spent between three and a half and 11 years in prison. For this wrongful conviction, we have worked very diligently with the attorneys. With these gentlemen, the requirement is, if you, if you agree to accept these settlements, we will issue the checks tomorrow and put these.

C

But all these issues to rest but I'm, sorry I, have to ask you I think it's a much better settlement than we would have expected for months ago and I'm happy to answer any questions you have about them.

A

I'd like to make a motion to.

A

Pay Z settlements and also add that this Kurt did an incredible job with this. But having said that, where you are, this is in the Buncombe County or paying some for something that Bobby medford did and that's not fair. What's also not fair, isn't anybody gets coerced enough to confess to something they didn't do and spend one night in jail, let alone this length of time. Second,.

B

There's been a motion. Second, any other discussion yeah. The only thing I can add is we got. We have a moral obligation. We took an oath to follow the Constitution. We took an oath to be just and fair to people. No one is on this board is excited, that's a lot of money, but I think we have the obligation and I think it's.

B

We need to get straight with it and it's a credible situation that we have been presented with, but we have to move on and be responsible to the taxpayers into the people we represent and I think this is the best move for us to do, and I certainly was supported. Any other comments.

D

Jeff, when I, when I heard about this back a long time ago, I was worried that the number smaller give it be really big. It is really big as far as I'm concerned, but it's a whole lot better.

D

Once we get to insurance and everything tied in it pulls it back down in the five million dollar range, still a whole lot, but mistakes for me and when they're made, you know the one part of us, but when they're made- and this is this- is Buncombe County and we are responsible to try to help fix things that happened, that our nose, that's rubbing.

B

Alright, any other comments, questions not called question all those in favor of the motion to father county manager's recommendation say on hi.

A

B

Opposed no, then the motion passes 620 and we will direct you to make that payment tomorrow. Thank.

C

B

Right I think that's all the business we have I do have announcements, August, eighteenth 430. Our board will meet with the asheville city counts. On the first floor conference room at 200, cod Street downstairs, August twenty-ninth at eleven o'clock, we'll have a ribbon cutting for the lake Julian trail extension at Lake, Julian, Park September one at four-thirty.

B

The next regular meeting of the board will be held in room 326 at 200 College Street in downtown Asheville, including the public hearing on the fiscal year budget that that's that one's not scratch that when I think we've already done the budget I fig.

A

B

We did that already I believe that that might be a misprint. Okay, those are the announcements or any other any other comments or discussion. 29. All right is there a motion to adjourn in a motion by vice chairs there, a second second by Commissioner, to brawl any discussion, all those in favor say: aye aye all opposed no we're adjourned. 620. Thank you.