Durham mayor accused of grooming | Cary financial mismanagement continues to emerge | Two deputies shot by habitual criminals
No. 155 — Dec. 14-Dec. 20, 2025
This week, two sheriff’s deputies survived being shot in unrelated incidents in Franklin and Chatham with one commonality: the suspect in each incident had an extensive history with the law for decades prior to resorting to the use of lethal force against law enforcement.
In case you missed it, the Triangle Trumpet exclusively reported on evidence of the leftist policy, practice, and pedagogy pushed by Dr. Nakia Hardy, who was selected by the Franklin County Board of Education as the district’s next superintendent.
The Durham mayor has been accused of grooming a former band student into a sexual relationship, which Williams vehemently denies.
Finally, we have more information coming out in regards to last weeks story around the Cary town manager, who has now resigned with a six month severance of $194,832 as even more evidence of concerning financial behavior emerge.
Domestic violence escalates to hostage situation, leaving felon dead and deputy nonfatally shot
Deputy shot multiple times during hostage situation - WBTV
Suspect dead, deputy shot in Chatham County hostage situation - CBS17
Deputy shot in Chatham County standoff on Pittsboro Road - N&O
On Tuesday, Chatham County Senior Deputy Matthew Mitchell was shot in the arm and the leg during a hostage situation in which the deputies stormed a barricaded residence near Goldston.
The suspect Kevin Dean Hammer, 50, who was left “deceased” due to unspecified causes during the incident, had an extensive criminal record with convictions/prison time for offenses dating back to 1993 including larceny, forgery, crime against nature, felony breaking and entering, and possession of a firearm by a felon in Chatham, Lee, and Moore counties.
Three weeks prior, Hammer had been arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and cocaine as well as a number of charges relating to him allegedly threatening a woman he was in a relationship with by discharging a pistol; the charging documents also accused Hammer of repeatedly kicking the car door of a responding deputy, and attempting to fight him.
At the time of his death, Hammer was out on a $100,000 secured bond, and was prohibited from possessing a firearm as part of his release conditions as well as due to his status as a felon.
Deputy shot by “demon” repeat offender
Franklin County Sheriff shares frustration online after deputy shot during pursuit - CBS17
Franklin deputy was shot by man with extensive criminal history - WRAL
NC SBI investigate shooting that left Franklin County deputy injured - ABC11
When it rains it pours: a Franklin County deputy also nearly met his end on Thursday night while pursuing a habitual and violent criminal near Louisburg, with only his plate armor standing between Deputy Taylor Lucas and instant death when he was shot “point-blank” in the chest, according to Sheriff Kevin White.
White shared his frustration in an unfiltered Facebook post excoriating the “weak, feckless, reckless, and dare I say useless politicians” and “political hack jobs” who ensured that the suspect Jermaine Anthony Branch, 40, was out on the street despite “dozens and dozens” of arrests throughout his life.
Branch’s public criminal history dates back over two decades to just after Branch’s eighteenth birthday with convictions listed by the NC Department Of Adult Correction including robbery, habitual impaired driving, and drug possession; the eCourts system lists over 70 cases against Branch in Franklin and the surrounding counties up until 2016, when he was sentenced to nine years in federal prison for possession of a firearm by a felon.
Branch was injured as well in the shootout, which involved at least two deputies, and remained in the hospital on Friday while Lucas was able to be released.
ICYMI: Franklin’s new superintendent a DEI zealot?
The GOP-majority Franklin County has selected a new superintendent with a history of promoting DEI practices and critical race theory-adjacent pedagogy while deputy superintendent of the state’s most liberal county school system in Durham, as dug up by yours truly.
In a 2020 podcast chock-full of leftist buzzwords, Dr. Nakia Hardy was described by her interviewer as having “implemented district-wide professional development on understanding implicit bias, equitable practices, and culturally responsive pedagogy.”
In response to an inquiry about such an extremist’s suitability in a county where the voters elected two state representatives who voted for a bill this year banning such “professional development” involving these “divisive concepts,” the Franklin County Schools responded that Hardy was in “alignment with the district’s mission and strategic priorities.”
For more details:
Durham Mayor accused of grooming band student
Durham mayor denies former student’s allegations of misconduct - N&O
Former Student Names Mayor Leonardo Williams In Allegations - The NC Beat
Durham Mayor Responds, Denies Former Student Allegations - The NC Beat
Durham Mayor Leonardo “Leo” Williams has been accused of engaging in a sexually inappropriate relationship with a student while a band director at Southern High School over a decade ago.
The former student Marquise Covington, 30, initially framed the accusation as a “hypothetical” in a Facebook post before alleging that it was factually accurate as to the relationship between Williams and himself: “let me be clear that’s it’s not hypothetical and I am talking about my experience as a junior at Southern High School and the band director was the now mayor Leonardo Williams.”
The post described Williams as assuming a mentorship role after the loss of Covington’s father, only to for Williams to use that relationship to show him self-made pornographic videos as a “rite of passage,” shaping him into Williams’ “confidante for his sexual exploits” beginning in his junior year of high school and lasting 4-5 years.
Covington’s post also indicated that he had been the subject of vague threats against “expos[ing]” Williams after Covington returned from military service.
In a statement released by his legal counsel, William vehemently denied the accusation, characterizing the allegations as “defamatory,” “troubling,” “false,” and “demonstrably untrue.”
Cary Manager resigns w/ nearly $200k severance amid expanding financial scandals
Cary town manager contract terminated, due $194K severance - WRAL
Cary swears in interim town manager, Stegall resigns - N&O
Town of Cary spent $1 million on land. Elected leaders left in the dark. - N&O
Cary town manager resigns amid financial issues - ABC11
Cary Town Council terminates contract with town manager - INDY Week
Cary Town Council Appoints Russ Overton as Interim - Town of Cary
Cary Town Manager Sean Stegall resigned on Monday after over three weeks of paid administrative leave with a severance package of $194,832, or six months salary, amid continuing revelation of questionable financial decisions/practices under his tenure.
Issues initially brought to light after his suspension include luxury hotels and nearly $40k in tuition reimbursement for a town councilmember, but even larger dollar-value expenses of concern have come to light in the past week, including mismanagement of a case of check fraud and land purchased without the council’s knowledge.
According to emails obtained by WRAL, then-councilmember Jennifer Robinson raised concern in August about the town’s handling of a $1.3 million vendor check which had been intercepted and stolen. According to Robinson’s email, town staff failed to take the opportunity to prevent the funds from being disbursed: “The financial institution brought that matter to our staff, and unfortunately it was not triggered as a fraudulent check, so that money went out the door from the town.”
In another dubious financial dealing discovered shortly before Stegall’s suspension, Robinson and Mayor Harold Weinbrecht only learned in November that he had spent over a million dollars earlier in the year in land purchased for “affordable housing,” a purchase which they would have expected to have been brought to the attention of the full council.
Not only had town staff recommended against purchasing the properties for housing in a 2024 report send to Councilmember Lori Bush due to their location in a floodplain, but the $1,065,000 paid for the adjoining lots on Kildaire Farm Road (1.58 acres combined) was 168% higher than the tax value assessed by the county in the same year.
Both lots were sold two the town by Jordan Real Estate Holdings, one lot had been purchased by the LLC for $250,000 in 2023, assessed at $248,242 by the county in 2024, and sold to the town for $686,000 in 2024, while the other lot had been transferred to the LLC by a member of the Jordan family, assessed at $149,064 by the county in 2024, and sold to the town for $379,000 in 2024.
In the wake of Stegall’s departure, the town has hired a law firm to investigate and “ensure that we are fully aware of any problems and that we put process changes in place so that something like this will never happen again,” according to Weinbrecht.
Previous Coverage:
State Auditor probing Cary after dubious financial transactions come to light amid town manager’s suspension (No. 154 — Dec. 13, 2025)
If bartenders are charged when serving drunkards, why don’t we charge judges who release convicts with a slap on the wrist wrist?