State Auditor Beth Wood attended prominent lawyer's party before crash, sources say

State Auditor Beth Wood was attending a party hosted by a prominent Raleigh lawyer the night she crashed a state-owned vehicle, multiple sources told WRAL. The incident led to a hit-and-run charge against Wood.

The party was held Dec. 8 in the building featured in a recently unsurfaced social media video. The video, posted on the same night, shows a tall woman fitting the description of Wood being ushered away from the crash scene and into a building at 132 S. Salisbury St.

The building is occupied in part by the Edmisten & Webb Law Firm. Rufus Edmisten, a partner in the firm and a former state attorney general and secretary of state, hosted a holiday party in the building that night, according to a copy of the invitation obtained by WRAL.

Details of Wood’s whereabouts help provide a clearer picture of the events leading up to the crash. Wood drove a state-owned Toyota into a car parked outside the building, rolling up onto its hood, according to police reports and descriptions of the crash aftermath reported to emergency dispatchers. Police arrived at the scene to find the engine running and no driver, one of those reports said. Wood was charged Dec. 12 with misdemeanor hit-and-run resulting in property damage. She was also cited for an unsafe movement infraction.

Wood, who reported the crash to insurers last month, said in a statement on Monday that she had been attending a holiday gathering for about two hours prior to the crash. She didn’t provide specifics about the gathering.

People familiar with the event told WRAL News that Wood had been at the Edmisten party. The event featured “food, drink and festivities,” according to the invitation.

Edmisten hasn’t responded to requests for comment.

Wood, who is scheduled to appear in administrative court on Thursday, hasn’t responded to requests for comment. In a statement Tuesday, her lawyer, Roger Smith Jr., said: “Ms. Wood is taking full responsibility for her actions and is cooperating with authorities.”

Asked whether Wood was drinking at the holiday gathering, her lawyer didn't answer.

In the social media video, taken by ride-share driver Larry Beam, people are seen walking away from the crash scene, ushering a woman fitting the description of Wood into the Salisbury Street building, yelling “get her out of here.”

Beam, who posted the video on Dec. 8, identified the tall woman as Wood after having seen her in recent news reports. "It was for sure her," he told WRAL News.

The video then pans to show the aftermath of a crash outside the building — a dark Toyota sedan with a state license plate atop a parked car. Beam's video also shows a man standing by the state-owned car, which was issued to Wood. The man appears to be on the phone, kicking the corner of the car.

“It seems like there’s so many other people involved,” Beam said, describing others in the vicinity as “leaving the scene or even [egging] on or enabling someone to leave the scene.”

Wood is the only person charged in the crash. Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said Tuesday that investigators hadn't found sufficient evidence to charge anyone else in connection with the incident.

Legislative leaders weigh in

Wood, a Democrat, is in her fourth term as state auditor, having served since 2009. Her office acts as a watchdog, examining financial affairs and regulatory processes of state government agencies. It also monitors other parts of state government, including computer systems, and it produces special studies requested by the state legislature, among other duties.

As news about the crash has emerged, some Republicans have praised Wood while also calling for more transparency. Meanwhile, the North Carolina Republican Party has demanded her resignation. Wood, in her statement Monday, vowed to stay in the job.

On Wednesday, the Republicans who lead the state legislature stopped short of calling for her resignation.

“Auditor Wood has, for a number of years, done what I think both Republicans and Democrats would say ... has been an exceptional job as state auditor,” Senate Leader Phil Berger told reporters at the statehouse. “The events of December really call into question a lot of things. Whether that rises to the level of ‘She ought to resign’ is something I think folks reasonably want to inquire about.”

“As much as I thought she has done a good job, I didn’t vote for her last time and would not intend to vote for her in the future,” Berger said. “I don’t know that that’s a call for resignation, but it’s a recognition that I would look for a change at some point.”

Berger added: “She’s an elected Democrat. I think it would be important to hear from the Democratic party as to whether or not they feel their candidate is someone that should continue to occupy that office.”

The North Carolina Democratic Party didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

"Obviously, this is a troubling situation," Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper said at an event in Moore County on Tuesday. "I’m glad that she has addressed this matter publicly,” he said, referring to her Monday statement.

Asked if he thinks she should step down, he said: “This is a matter that is currently under investigation, and that should continue to proceed.”

Republican House Speaker Tim Moore, who said he watched Beam’s video, also said the process should play out in court.

“Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law,” he told reporters Wednesday. “But it certainly raises some questions, and I think you just have to let the criminal justice process take its path.”

WRAL State Government reporters Travis Fain and Paul Specht contributed to this report.