Blair Carr, the GPD Assault Matter and the Upcoming Review

Ben Holder broke some astonishing news on his blog several days ago.  It seems almost incredible, and I have not seen it reported elsewhere.  But Ben says that former Greensboro Assistant City Attorney Blair Carr was charged with a DUI this past week, and that she blew a .27 when stopped.  Recall that Carr had accepted a position with the Winston-Salem legal department at a lower rate of pay than that she was receiving in Greensboro.

If Ben's report is true (and he does link to a web page documenting her charge), it is a momentous, earth-shaking revelation.  It is profoundly tragic for Ms. Carr.  Regardless of how we feel about the work she performed, she deserves our empathy.

But this revelation nonetheless casts additional doubt on the work that was done by the City Attorney's office and Mitchell Johnson.  These parties were laying the groundwork for the task of later ushering former Chief David Wray, those in his command structure and some of his investigators out of their respective positions.

Ms. Carr was at the forefront of the efforts undertaken by the City Attorney's office.  She interacted directly with the key players at RMA Associates.  She co-authored the City Attorney's report which laid out the case unilaterally that the city of Greensboro had discriminated repeatedly against its black officers.

Indeed, it is very surprising that Ms. Carr's misfortune does not appear to have been covered in the mainstream local media.  Within the last several years we saw other prominent individuals highlighted mercilessly for similar offenses-- for instance, Tolly Carr and the former head of the Guilford County Health Department.

We need to understand the meaning of a level of .27.  Remain mindful that the average drink containing alcohol results in an average equivalent breath alcohol level of approximately .025.  It therefore takes probably at least 11 "average" drinks to reach a level of .27.  That is a lot of alcohol, and presumably may represent binge drinking.

And the level of impairment one demonstrates at the .27 level is profound.  What are the effects at that level?  According to Wiki:  stupor, loss of understanding, impaired sensations, memory blackout, severe motor impairment, and loss of consciousness.

If this was truly her level, she could have easily killed someone.  Moreover, levels just a bit higher than what she is reported to have registered could have led to her own death due to the toxic effects of alcohol. 

What are the implications of all this unreported news?  First, it is possible that one of the key players coordinating the city's legal efforts to politicize the police department may have been (or may not have been) struggling with substance abuse;  and may have violated the law by driving while impaired.  Those pieces of information certainly would seem to undermine further the credibility of the work done behind the scenes in the legal office leading to the City Attorney's report and the RMA report.

Second, this is not the only news within the last week or so that undermines the credibility of the city's role in the GPD fiasco.  The GPD assault investigation apparently involves one of the officers who directly questioned Wray during the infamous August, 2005 meeting arranged by Joe Williams, Linda Miles and Mitchell Johnson-- the meeting which Wray described as an inquisition.  And no one has yet answered my question as to whether one of the officers involved in the reported assault incident was instrumental in making or advancing the allegations about the "black book". 

Many of the contentions made previously by the city with regard to the GPD fiasco have been rebutted successfully-- really, demolished-- by Jerry Bledsoe, the Rhino Times and Ben Holder.  But we now have two more red flags that arose within the last week.

And all of the above circumstances have become apparent on the eve of a special meeting of the City Council scheduled for tomorrow, ostensibly to decide what information regarding the GPD assault case the City will release.  It will be very important to observe closely what council members do, and what they don't do.  We need to understand what they say, and what they don't say.

And it will be interesting to see whether they happen to discuss further the process they will use to select the firm that will survey the GPD.  It appears that the firm will be selected by Mitchell Johnson and Tim Bellamy according to the current plan.  That would be a terrible mistake. 

The City Council needs to demonstrate leadership, and take control of this critical task.  The general public has a vital interest in the work that the firm selected will produce.  There is a crisis of confidence in our police department, at a time when crime, gangs and homicides are spiraling out of control locally.  The Council needs to assure the public that the work of this firm will possess validity, and therefore should maintain close involvement with this process, on behalf of constituents who want better crime control.  They need to keep Johnson and Bellamy out of the selection process.

We don't want any more reports prepared in a manner similar to those that Blair Carr helped produce.

Comments

[Betty Almond]

Joe, someone asked John Robinson why there was no coverage of the DUI of Blair Carr and he said his paper didn't normally cover DUIs and that since she was not a Greensboro employee or a public figure, he saw no reason to cover it. He implied that the Winston paper didn't cover it either. Instead they wrote about wrapping paper creations. I guess it is a matter of setting your priorities and we know where his paper stands on that.

[Joe Guarino]

Betty, thanks for pointing that out. I missed that conversation. I have to disagree with Mr. Robinson. She was an important public figure in Greensboro until very recently; and was heavily involved in a highly controversial matter.

Her work had far more impact on big news locally than that done by the county health department director, for instance.

[Dr. Mary Johnson]

Joe, GREAT post, right on the mark . . . especially (and unfortunately) on the point about the N&R missing the point once again. I was incredulous that JR did not deem this "relevant" to anything that went on at City Hall.

It's the same kind of "we wish you well, but you can rot in ignomy because, we've decided your story is irrelevant" garbage I've gotten from local journalists supposedly so concerned about transparency and accountability.

Here's my prediction. The lay-offs at the "mainstreams" will continue, because the ordinary Joes and Janes getting screwed (and moreover, ultimately footing the bill for the screw) are getting sick of the holier-than-thou wink & nod routine.

[Joe Guarino]

Thanks, Mary. I think this is a big story. Of course, we cannot prove on the basis of what we know that there were problems with substance abuse previously-- but she does appear to be middle aged, so we would also have to question how likely it is that the problem is of new or recent onset.

[Dr. Mary Johnson]

I wonder. To help answer that question, wouldn't a DUI arrest merit an automatic look-see by the State Bar (as the same kind of event would certainly have the Medical Board swarming all over an impaired physician)? And even if it did, how fast do you think that the circled wagons could blow it off?

Lawyers can do no wrong in this state.

[Joe Guarino]

You are right, Mary, that the state Medical Board would certainly take action if this were to occur in the case of a licensed physician. I really don't know how the State Bar would react.

[Dr. Mary Johnson]

I do. All too well.

[Joe Guarino]

Mary, I think the whole idea about licensure-- whether it be for physicians or attorneys or practitioners of any other profession or trade-- is that the public needs at least a minimal degree of protection from certain types of situations. Presumably, the public interest is impacted when an attorney is impaired by substance abuse, because it has to be presumed it would potentially impact the service provided to clients.

In the case of an attorney employed by a municipality, there are numerous layers of clients-- the municipality itself, its directors and employees, and of course its citizens.

[Fred Gregory]

Blair Carr, not a prominent pulic figure ? Come on JR, give us a beter dodge than that. Yes Joe, Carr was on their team and the N&R has chosen to overlook her misfortune. You point out that the N&R covered the now disposed of Health Dierctor's DUI and that of Tolly Carr. Just from memory , and I am sure there are more examples but there were numerous stories about Phil Ford and his DUI problems even one that happened in another state ( Michigan ). The N&R also had extensive front page coverage of two FBI Agents DUI's in the late 80's . No, JR that dog don't hunt.

[Joe Guarino]

Fred, it appears a number of people may be wondering whether the non-coverage happened because she was on the "right" side of the GPD issue. I will not see the Rhino until later tonight, and it will be interesting to see if and how they report it.

[Fred Gregory]

I haven't seen the Rhino as yet , myself. Thanks for mreminding me it is Thursday.

[Ben Holder]

Joe,

I was wrong about Carr getting two DUI's. However, I am correct about everything else. She did get one.

[Joe Guarino]

Thanks, Ben. And I appreciate all the work you do.

[Bubba]

JR's tune now is that the DUI has nothing to do with the lawsuits; hence, the story is not relevant.

How in the hell does he get away with pulling stunts like that?

Does Landmark Communications not have any upline accountability for news employees?

[Joe Guarino]

Bubba, we can't necessarily prove a relationship; but we sure can't rule it out either.

[ben holder]

http://thetroublemaker.blogspot.com/2008/01/blair-carr-suspended.html

[Joe Guarino]

Thanks, Ben. It speaks for itself, but there will obviously be more to say about that later.

[Bubba]

"It speaks for itself, but there will obviously be more to say about that later."

Not by the N & R; that's for sure.

[jc]

I think its amazing that she blew a .28 on the breathlyzer shortly after noon. Drinking that much alcohol while at work would lead me to beleive that she is an alcoholic and needs more than just legal help.

I wonder if she was suspected of drinking on the job here in G'boro and if that was why she left for a lower paying job in WS?