Kenny Hardin, Salisbury City Councilman
♦ As promised during my campaign, I’m offering transparency as much as possible. As a Councilman, I try to keep everyone abreast of my involvement, activities, work and interactions. I want those who put their trust in me with their vote to know I’m out working.
I want to break this veil of secrecy and refusal to be open about things the City has engaged in for years. There is a position that we should limit contact with the media and not respond when asked about issues and things going on.
As I said to one of my colleagues after the last Council meeting, I was not hired by the City nor do I work for any of the other Council members so I will not be restrained by them or care how they feel about me being open and transparent. So, I will continue to share meetings and conversations with the public that are not privileged.
I had a short but meaningful conversation with our District Attorney, Brandy Cook, last night at the Republican dinner. It was my first time meeting her. We touched on the poor relationship between law enforcement and the Black community. I explained how this lack of trust and communication hampers solving crime and the unsolved murders we have.
I shared with her a comment our previous Chief made to the West End Pride group saying they knew who committed five of the murders but it was difficult working with her because of her expectations of evidence that was different from the previous DA before her.
I appreciated that she took the time to explain what her approach and expectations involving prosecuting murder cases involved. I was left with a favorable impression and explained that I was committed to repairing and improving the fractured relationship.
