CLARKSTON, Ga. — The controversy surrounding a metro Atlanta city manager who some say is “creating a toxic work environment” has now led a city council member to resign.
Clarkston Councilwoman Susan Hood resigned effective immediately on Thursday evening during a town hall where residents voiced their frustrations with the city government.
“The only thing that should matter, but no one cares about is competence and accountability,” Hood said during her resignation speech. “I leave it to y’all. I have better things to do with my time. Oh, I’m out. This is done.”
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Clarkston Police Chief Christine Hudson says she was demoted several months after filing an ethics complaint against City Manager Shawanna Qawiy accusing her of being racist.
Now, the Clarkston Police Department is down to just 12 officers, which they expect to soon be just nine. Several police officers have cited Qawiy as the main problem in the department.
Chief Hudson says there are only two officers on patrol during each shift. U.S. Census Bureau data shows more than 14,500 people live in the 1.85 square mile city.
Attorney for Chief Hudson, Ed Buckley, said, “In March of this year, [Chief Hudson] asked for an eight, eight and a half salary increase for her officers. Then, she was written up and disciplined and suspended in April, and that’s when officers told her they were looking for other positions.”
The chief and city manager have been publicly at odds since earlier this year when Qawiy suspended Hudson without pay for insubordination.
“Very, very trivial incident,” said Buckley. “The city manager, and [Hudson] and one other individual were in a meeting, and the city manager started in on her and she said there we go again or here we go again or something like that, and she got written up for insubordination.”
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Qawiy publicly spoke against the allegations for the first time during a Clarkston City Council meeting on Tuesday. She did not speak at Thursday’s meeting.
“Oh I have great interaction right now with the police department,” said Qawiy. “The ones who make the hard decisions are the first ones to get looked at.”
Earlier this month, Qawiy hired John Pearson, a retired law enforcement professional with more than 40 years under his belt, as Director of Police Services.
“He’s not a new leader, he’s actually working with the police chief,” said Qawiy. “They’re equal. There’s no demotions, there’s no salary deductions.”
Qawiy maintains that she is not the issue with the city government.
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