Get Carter!

Lindsey Carter was one of those behind the scenes attorneys. I've attended a lot of board meetings and I can't remember one instance where he voiced his concerns about protecting the City of Lumberton. Wait. There was this one instance. I recall when Mayor Miriam R. Holder was going to read a memo or note she received from the city clerk and she was going to read the contents of the letter. Carter advised her that she could not give details of the letter because it was a personnel issue. Other than that one incident, I can't recall any other time when Carter advised the board of their violations or possible violations according to the law. Well, maybe his sit back and watch, I'll get back with you, I got to research that, I 'm busy but here's my bill approach changed after the board decided not to respond to the letter of complaint I submitted regarding the behavior of Daniel "Danny" Davis. Wait, I might be wrong on that matter as well. Based on one of the tapes I received, it was noted that Carter was going to meet with the board to discuss the letter but for some reason, I was never notified of this meeting and I was never given a response to any of the letters I submitted. I'm still trying to put together the pieces from the special call meeting. It seems that Carter may have given the board some news they're not willing to accept. I can't say that I blame them since most of his decisions seemed to go along with the majority of the board instead of thus saith the law. I guess the grant money gravy train is over for Carter because the board is trying to hire former Hattiesburg Municipal Judge and Attorney Vanessa J. Jones; the self-proclaimed "problem-solver."

The other day someone was miffed after I mentioned Carter's absence from the first regularly scheduled meeting of 2017. It was reported that Carter has a grandchild that's battling cancer. I pray that all is well with his grandchild but I wonder if the same outrage that was geared towards me will be pointed toward the elected officials since they're allegedly trying to terminate Carter's employment while his family is dealing with a serious medical issue. Terminating or targeting someone while ill or out of commission is par for the course for Lumberton's elected officials. If memory serves me correctly, the board terminated several city employees while they were battling illness or trying to recover. Former city clerk, Stephanie Mullings was terminated while on sick leave; they also terminated Dennis Hobson on the day of his surgery. Most recently, the board terminated deputy clerk Melissa Nightengale for allegedly being cordial to certain customers in the midst of a worker's compensation claim. Per the request of the public works director, the board terminated several employees while they were battling illnesses: Harry Wilkes, Otis Washington and Jimmy Willis. Those that are supposed to be representing the best interest of the City of Lumberton at times can be lower than the belly of a pregnant python. I'm not sure what led the board to move to distance themselves from Carter; especially during a time when they should be circling their wagons.

In an interesting twist, this is not the first time the board tried to Get Rid of Carter. I recall Carter getting terminated when Mayor Miriam Holder was serving but the board failed to overturn her veto when she was not able to attend the meetings due to a medical issue. Since the veto was never overturned, Carter was never released from the payroll but Mayor Holder refused to sign his paycheck since he was "legally" no longer employed by the City of Lumberton. In order to keep Carter on the payroll, Alderman at Large, Bobby Gibson, signed Carter's paychecks. Now that I'm thinking back about this matter, I wonder why I never filed an ethics complaint about this matter. I think it's time I do so and show the board that they're responsible for their actions long after they're no longer under the coverage of their bonds. There's another matter that may work to my advantage because of the board's failure to adhere to the law but I will save that little surprise for later. It's interesting how quickly relationships deteriorate in the City of Lumberton. As I reflect on the various backroom deals that took place under Carter's watch. One thing about those tables, they always turn. Just this past December, Carter was allegedly meeting with Heinsleigh Lee at Dan's Truck Stop in Hattiesburg right before the meeting when the board was trying to sell the National Guard Building for $10,000 to an undisclosed buyer. I wonder if he was there to warn him to wait on the steal of a deal; much like the one he got for the Movie Star Building. I guess we will never know unless Carter becomes bitter and decides to spill the tea. You know the old saying enemy of my enemy is my friend and right about now, the City of Lumberton is Carter's enemy.