Kenly to hold emergency meeting after police force, 2 clerks resign in protest over 'hostile' work environment

Kenly's town attorney Chip Hewett told WRAL News that the town would be holding an emergency meeting on Friday night at 7 p.m. to discuss how the town would be handling public safety.

"We just learned about this [Wednesday], it effects the entire police dept and staff members, we are looking at having an emergency special meeting to figure out how to move forward with it," Hewett said.

Even before the resignations, the police force was short-staffed, down from a norm of eight officers to five, Gibson said.

The letters, obtained by WRAL News, hint at a hostile work environment since the hiring of a new town manager. Justine Jones has been in that job for about a month.

Gibson and his five officers made it clear that their complaints were not over pay.

In response to the resignations, Johnston County Sheriff Steve Bizzell said his office would help pick up the slack.

"I will be there for the people of Kenly, and they can rest assured they will have deputies patrolling the streets," he said.

Bizzell said if the sheriff's office receives a call that there isn't an officer in Kenly, deputies would be dispatched immediately.

"We're stepping up and stepping out, and as Johnston County and the sheriff's office, we're going to be there for our people and the citizens. They may be the citizens of the town of Kenly, but they're still citizens of the county of Johnston, also," he said.

State Highway Patrol in Johnston County has also been in contact with the sheriff's office and is prepared to help investigate accidents on the highway.

"The new [town manager] has created an environment I do not feel we can perform our duties and services to the community," Gibson said in a statement on Facebook.

WRAL News has reached out to the town council to clarify when Gibson official began as Kenly's police chief.

2020: Council votes out Kenly town manager after battery charge

Gibson said he would consider returning to the police force if Jones was dismissed.

Jones declined an interview, saying she was "not at liberty to talk because of a personnel matter."

Jones, a Black woman, sued her previous employer – Richland County, S.C. – for gender and racial discrimination after she was terminated. The lawsuit says she worked as manager of research and was an assistant director.

She alleges "hostile" treatment by Richland County leaders and her supervisor and retaliation for reporting bad behavior. Jones claims in the lawsuit that she was not paid fairly and was also treated differently due to illness.

She was terminated on March 30, 2015, and that lawsuit was later voluntarily dismissed. Court records don't reveal why the case was dismissed.

Jones was selected by the town council after a "nationwide search" of 30 candidates, according to a town press release. She's worked in public service for the past 16 years in local governments in Minnesota, Virginia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

Jones has two Master's degrees, one in public policy from the Humphrey School at the University of Minnesota and a second Master’s degree in public administration from the City University of New York Baruch College.

After being fired from her job in Richland County she worked at her own consulting company before being hired in Kenly on June 2, 2022.