by Catherine Rierson
Staff Writer
According to Chapel Hill Town public information officer Catherine Lazorko, Town Manager Roger Stancil has promised potential criminal charges and employee termination as repercussions for the perpetrator of a second unsolved case of racist graffiti.
Lazorko was unaware of any new developments in the ongoing investigation promised by the town manager, and Stancil is withholding comments on the investigation, she said.
The graffiti, reading “Black Panthers KKK Head Coach J. Neville,†was found in the bathroom of the Town Operations Center on July 3 and apparently was directed at Jerry Neville, an ex-chairman of the Black Public Works Association.
Neville informed the council that his name along with racist comments were previously written on a urinal, and a black noose had been drawn on the stall wall of a different bathroom at the public works headquarters.
Alan McSurely, legal redress chair of the local NAACP, told The Citizen that no one has provided Neville with details of the police investigation; Chapel Hill police have still not charged anyone or released any news concerning the investigation.
“The council is seriously concerned about the graffiti and the town manager has made a commitment to releasing any information as soon as it surfaces,†Lazorko said.
“It is the policy of the Town of Chapel Hill to maintain a respectful work and public service environment free from discrimination, from violence, and from other offensive or degrading remarks or conduct,†Stancil said in a statement.
“This type of offensive behavior is not tolerated or permitted by the Town of Chapel Hill, nor is it representative of our employees.â€