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CITY MANAGER AND CITY ATTORNEY DEFAME LOCAL MINISTER IN EMAIL TO BOARD MEMBERS


City Manager Bruce Moore was not at the Little Rock Board of Directors meeting on May 16, 2017.

He was not present to listen to the Reverend Benny Johnson, founder and director of Arkansas Stop the Violence speak to Mayor Stodola and board members about his and the community's growing concerns about LRPD Chief Kenton Buckner.

Take a second and watch Rev. Johnson's remarks to the LRBOD.






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This is the letter that was sent to Rev. Johnson and many other individuals in Little Rock.





This is the mailer that was sent to every household in Little Rock that features a uniformed Chief Buckner endorsing the failed funding measure of the state controlled Little Rock Public School district.




The group that paid for this mailer was headed by Gary Smith, who is a Little Rock businessman (Glass Erectors, Inc.), a former president of Bank of America, Inc. operations in Arkansas and a Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce executive.


Smith is often the frontman for Chamber backed initiatives.




Smith said the campaign for the millage extension had been funded with $1,000 contributions from himself and retired Central Arkansas Library System Director Bobby Roberts (he is featured in the mailer). 

No doubt a little of the $300,000 the Little Rock Board of Directors approved in April to subsidize Chamber operations, mostly political activities, trickled down to help support the sham committee Smith formed for the school funding issue.

Rev. Johnson also made reference to a little tiff Chief Buckner had with the city's Racial and Cultural Diversity Commission.  Buckner wanted them to give him a letter grade for his performance - he got an "F". We had a post that detailed that in April.  You can read it by clicking here.

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The day after Rev. Johnson spoke about the concerns with LRPD and Chief Buckner, City Manager Bruce Moore sent out this email.  Remember, Moore was absent for the board meeting the evening before.

The source for Moore's "understanding" was none other than city attorney Tom Carpenter.

 
Moore's email was forwarded to Rev. Johnson and an unknown number of people. 

The allegation in Moore's email about Rev. Johnson were entirely false. 

The allegation is defamatory and places Rev, Johnson in a false light.

The allegation was made in an attempt to intimidate and silence Rev. Johnson and with its exposure to the public has placed Rev. Johnson in a false light and had caused member of the community to not know what to think and question Rev. Johnson's reputation.

The city better get it checkbook handy.

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Changes are needed in leadership at City Hall and on the Little Rock Board of Directors.

This type of conduct cannot go unchallenged. Moore and Carpenter owe Rev. Johnson a written apology and they both need to issue an apology to Rev Johnson at a board meeting.


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Take a look at another blog that deals with Chief Buckner's shenanigans.



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