Protester arrested outside NC governor’s mansion as activists seek early release of inmates
A raucous protest Friday, with cars honking and circling the Executive Mansion, resulted in one arrest as activists called on Gov. Roy Cooper to show more support for people who are incarcerated.
“It was to bring awareness and attention to this issue by making noise,” said Kerwin Pittman, a community activist who attended the protest.
People wore bandannas or masks over their faces and showed signs inside and outside their cars saying “Care Not Cages,” “Free them all” and “Social distancing does not exist in jails.”
Pittman is calling for the release of inmates who are jailed for non-violent offenses with less than a year left on their sentences to keep them safe from a coronavirus outbreak.
“This is one of the most vulnerable populations,” Pittman said. “They sleep on bunks on top of each other.”
There are five reported coronavirus outbreaks in jails, state prisons and federal prisons in North Carolina in Granville, Greene, Halifax, Johnston and Wayne Counties, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.
Butner, a federal prison in Granville County, has the largest outbreak among federal prisons. There have been 83 reported cases of coronavirus, including 60 inmates and 23 staff members, according to the Bureau of Prisons website. The prison houses about 4,700 inmates at its four facilities.
“We don’t want it to be another Butner,” Pittman said.
During the protest, a few people threw wooden pallets in front of the gate to the governor’s residence while an officer asked them repeatedly to remove them.
Carmack Kelley, 32, of Knoxville, Tenn., was charged with violating an executive order, assaulting a law government official with a deadly weapon, resisting a public officer and littering, according to State Capitol Police.
“Next time a law enforcement officer tells you to stop, you stop,” a State Capitol Police officer told Kelley after he pulled Kelley out of his pickup truck and handcuffed him.
“I didn’t hear you over the music,” Kelley said as he was handcuffed.
State Capitol Police did not respond to The News & Observer’s request for comment Saturday.
Last week, Sue Allison, spokeswoman for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, said Butner has been added to a list of federal prisons that will release some inmates early to home confinement, The News & Observer reported.
This story has been updated to correct Kerwin Pittman's title.
