Former Newbern Mayor Haywood “Woody” Stokes III believes despite conspiring to block a rightfully elected Black mayor from sitting in the position, he should not be named in a federal civil lawsuit that claims he violated anyone’s rights.
The politician is relying on the concept of “qualified immunity” as a shield, attempting to exempt himself and fellow white lawmakers from legal action. Their argument is that the legalities around the Newbern mayoral elections do not “clearly establish” rules that say their actions broke or violated any laws.
Patrick Braxton, the elected mayor, has taken legal action, filing a lawsuit against several parties, including Stokes III, the former white mayor of Newbern, his council, various government officials, and the People’s Bank of Greensboro.
According to the federal lawsuit, Braxton alleges that these defendants collaborated to prevent him from assuming his duly elected office.
The claim suggests that they disregarded the results of the 2020 election and unlawfully installed Stokes as mayor, even though he was not a candidate on the ballot. Members of Braxton’s appointed city council, James Ballard, Barbara Patrick, Janice Quarles, and Wanda Scott, assert that, much like Braxton, they are not acknowledged by the previous administration.
The defendants filed a motion to dismiss on Friday, July 21, stating that the actions they took to secure their positions in government could not be prosecuted because there is no precedent.
Law & Crime reports that the city of Newbern is governed by a mayor and five council members selected from residents in the town. The election, according to the city’s municipal code, is held on the fourth Thursday of August at the start of a four-year term interval. However, the town is reported to have not “held an election in decades.”
In lieu of an official election, the mayor’s position is “‘inherited’ by a hand-picked successor.”…
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