Leaders of the Pulpit Forum say files on the Klan-Nazi shootings were destroyed while David Wray was police chief and the City of Greensboro has done absolutely nothing. Current Chief Tim Bellamy responds. Next up, City Manager Mitchell Johnson. As for the third player in this drama (fourth if you count Wray, though there are no specific actions against him), it will be interesting to see how former Mayor Keith Holliday responds, since he pretty much wishes Nov. 3, 1979 would just go away.

For starters, the reverends don’t even know what’s in the files. You also have to wonder why the Rev. Nelson Johnson and the three co-chairs of the Truth and Reconciliation Project would expect cooperation from a city government that stood in “formal opposition to the truth and reconcilation process.” And anyone else find it interesting that the reverends turn around and defend Mitchell Johnson after he’d affirmed Bellamy’s decision that an investigation of Sgt. Craig McNinn would be problematic?

Nelson Johnson should just have gone public in the first place and let the city react. If the city publicly backpeddles on this issue, Mitchell Johnson et.al will look worse than they do now. And just when you think it’s not possible.

Update: OK, I went back and read this paragraph, after Bellamy said no-go to the investigation:

Disappointed with the turn of events, another meeting was arranged with City Manager Mitchell Johnson. After a lengthy discussion, City Manager Johnson essentially confirmed the position of Chief Bellamy. When the City Manager was asked why not make the information public that we had given to him, he explained that there were strong interests that would likely exploit the situation and make it appear as if he were making “wild and unsubstantiated” charges. We assume for political purposes.

So it’s possible Mitchell Johnson might have thought there was something there but was afraid of the political climate, thus the Pulpit Forum’s defense. Still, if that’s true, that’s a pretty weak response, considering the charges were unsubstantiated.