New Hanover commissioner faces calls to resign

The chairman of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners is calling on fellow commissioner Brian Berger to resign amid erratic behavior.

Posted 1:12 a.m. Mar 25, 2013 — Updated 1:15 a.m. Mar 25, 2013

RALEIGH, N.C. — New Hanover County Commissioner Brian Berger is facing calls to resign in the wake of what colleagues call aggressive and unsettling behavior.

Woody White, chairman of the board of commissioners, told WRAL this weekend that county staffers and commissioners fear for their safety.

The Wilmington Star News reported on Friday that calls for Berger's resignation intensified after he unexpectedly climbed on stage with Gov. Pat McCrory during a groundbreaking for a new community college building.

The paper also described an incident in which Berger stood by the governor's convoy and banging on the windows of the vehicles. The commissioner was "yelling and demanding a meeting with McCrory," the paper recorded.

White confirmed to WRAL that he has offered help to Berger.

"I implore you to gather with your friends and family, and seek treatment," White wrote in an email, quoted by the paper. "I will help with that, if asked, for free. But I also ask – implore – that you resign immediately. It is time. It was time for you to do so long ago, but these recent episodes have reached a critical mass."

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