Alamance sheriff, Graham police dodge judge’s order to release march video

Neither the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office nor the Graham Police Department complied with a superior court judge’s order to release video from a march to the polls last fall that ended in a cloud of pepper spray.

Superior Court Judge Andrew H. Hanford wrote in a June 15 order that the agencies must give a coalition of news organizations, including The News & Observer, all recordings and photographs from the Oct. 31 event by 2 p.m. today.

The agencies’ use of pepper spray on marchers, including older adults and small children gathered near the town’s Confederate monument, made national headlines last fall. Several commentators interpreted the police response as voter intimidation, and two lawsuits making similar claims were filed shortly afterward.

After reviewing the footage and photographs and listening to arguments by the news organizations and law enforcement agencies, Hanford found that “failure to release the photos/recordings would undermine the public trust and confidence in the administration of justice.”

Yet when N&O visual journalist Julia Wall arrived at the law enforcement agencies’ offices Friday afternoon, none of the media was shared. Graham Assistant Chief Rodney King referred Wall to an attorney hired by the city. Michelle Mills, a spokeswoman for the sheriff’s office, said the county was weighing an appeal to Hanford’s decision.

In a written statement, C. Amanda Martin, an attorney representing the media coalition, said: “The City of Graham and Alamance County both were ordered by the Court to produce video today. The City has filed a motion for a stay of that deadline, but that motion has not been granted.”

Alamance County did not notify the news organizations that it intended to appeal prior to the release deadline, Martin said.

The news organizations’ petition for release of this footage has been pending since December.