Wednesday, October 17, 2018

(News 12 at 6 o'clock)

LOUISVILLE, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT)-- The city of Louisville sits with a population of just over two-thousand people but the spotlight is on about 40 of them. Seniors at the Jefferson County Leisure Center were told to get off a Black Voters Matter bus on it's way to the polls.

Black Voters Matter is a group that tours southern rural areas, encouraging minorities to vote. This is an independent organization, meaning non-partisan. The group focuses on simply casting a ballot. To the leaders, the fight isn't Republican vs. Democrat, it's about fighting ignorance with the power of knowledge.

"Because when I was coming up, I didn't know what voting was," said Bernice Hunley.

She's a 70-year-old born and raised in Louisville. She's been around longer than she's gotten to even use her voting rights. While she loves home, home hasn't always been good to her or people who look

like her.

"There's been some issues." She laughed, "But I ain't finna get in no trouble."

She's in no trouble, it's the Board of Commissioners facing backlash. The board is in the hot seat after dozens of senior citizens were told they had to get off a bus on Monday.

"Oh it's a big ‘ole black bus, it's a beautiful bus."

On either side of it reads “Black Voters Matter” and “The South is Rising.” As Hunley and many others who go to the Leisure Center called it, it's a big ‘ole charter.

"That's how we felt when we first had to get off--that's how we felt like, why we can't vote," she asked.

The center is owned and run by Jefferson County. It's a place for activities, not long-term or even short-term living. Visitors come and go as they please. So when they asked the Black Voters group to take them to the voting precinct, which is just around the corner, they did not expect push back.

"These are grown people. We're not talking about children." LaTosha Brown continued, "These are grown adults, they have the right--they come to the center as a patron of the center. They're not a resident of the center, nobody has control or authority over them."

It was news to many, if not all of the seniors, that the county had say-so on them getting onto the bus.

"I didn't see no harm in riding the bus over here to vote," Hunley explained as she sat across the street from the precinct parking

lot. Hunely was one of the people who still went to vote after they were told by the center director to de-board. She drove her own car over to early vote.

And while she didn't see harm being on the bus, apparently Jefferson County did. In a statement to News 12, County Administrator Adam Brett wrote:

"These senior citizens are under the complete care and supervision of Jefferson County while they are at the Senior Center. Jefferson County Administration felt uncomfortable with allowing Senior Center patrons to leave the facility in a bus with an unknown third party."

But the statement also went on to say the center has a long standing practice of not doing political events during hours of operation. Adding, it was led by the President of the Jefferson County Democratic Party and as such was considered a political event.

Black Voters Matter maintains there is no political affiliation to Democratic party, that Monday's discussion was not run by the Democratic party.

We reached out to the District Attorney's Office for clarity. The office has no hand in this situation but they did give us possible answers. The DA says it's reasonably within the county's reach because they assume liability.

If a third party comes onto county property then leaves with people, regardless of their age, if something were to happen to them, the county could be held responsible. So there's essentially a technicality because once the seniors are on the property, from that point they're under the city's liability. Here's a scenario where the county would have little to no say-so:

The seniors who wanted to take the bus ride would've had to completely leave the property first, on their own free will, before the bus could pick them up. At that point, liability is unlikely to be on the county.

But Black Voters Matters say it just does not add up because many of the seniors were already on their way out, planning to vote.

"Is the county saying they're responsible for them when they're not at the center," Brown asked. "Cause if so, I'm sure there's a whole bunch of things the seniors would love their help on."

UPDATE

Wednesday, October 17, 2018

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) -- Jefferson County officials have released a statement in response to an incident involving a group of African American senior citizens who were apparently taken off a bus headed to vote Monday.

The statement reads:

Jefferson County operates a Senior Center that provides meals and entertainment to senior citizens in Jefferson County three days per week. The Jefferson County Board of Commissioners has a long standing practice of not allowing political activities during normal business hours or at County sponsored activities. These senior citizens are under the complete care and supervision of Jefferson County while they are at the Senior Center. Jefferson County Administration felt uncomfortable with allowing Senior Center patrons to leave the facility in a bus with an unknown third party. Additionally, the event in question that took place at the Jefferson County Senior Center was led by the President of the Jefferson County Democratic Party and as such was considered a political event. No seniors at the Jefferson County Senior Center were denied their right to vote. In fact, Senior Center staff routinely arrange Jefferson County Public Transit to transport senior citizens to vote. Jefferson County invites and encourages all registered voters to vote from October 15-November 2 from 8 AM to 5 PM, October 27 from 9 AM to 4 PM and on election day November 6 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Tuesday, October 16, 2018

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) -- A group of African American voters was apparently taken off a bus headed to vote Monday.

The group Black Voters Matter posted on their Facebook page they had "a whole busload of beautiful black elders ready to go vote when the county commissioner shut us down and made our elders get off the bus without having the chance to vote."

News 12 reached out to Jefferson County's emergency management director, who told us he couldn't comment on the allegations. He told us to get a hold of commissioners.

Monday was the first day of early voting in Georgia for November 6th elections, which includes a gubernatorial vote.