Continued fallout from Monday’s Knox County Commission work session is in the news, at least here and with my friends over at the Compass, they reported this morning that the Public Building Authority does not plan to honor Sheriff Tommy Spangler’s ban of Monday’s seven arrested individuals from the City County Building.
In My Humble Opinion, the current position of the PBA has this one right on two points,
#1 First Amendment (the right to say what we wanna say is Protected in the US Constitution)
#2 Innocent Until Proven Guilty – they may have been arrested, they may have been cited/charged. They ain’t been found GUILTY.
Now, the Mount Zion Baptist Church and its Pastor the Rev. Dr. Johnnie Williams Skinner, Sr. sent a letter on the behalf of his son and fellow Pastor Rev. Calvin TAYLOR Skinner and in the letter challenged Knox County Commissioner Larsen Jay the Chairman of the body.
Specific language from the letter, “I call on the chair of the Knox County Commission, Mr. Larsen Jay, to explain why the sign posted about the demonstration was posted on this day. I call on the chair to answer how can residents of Knox County, especially, can be banned from the City County Building after being arrested for exercising their first amendment rights? I expect a formal response”
Larsen Jay replied by letter,
Dear Rev. Dr. Skinner,
I am in receipt of your letter dated today and concern for your son along with the other protestors who disrupted our Knox County Commission meeting on Monday, April 19th.
Regarding your inquiry on specific signage posted on the doors of the City County Building, I can only refer you to the Public Building Authority (PBA) under the direction of Jayne Burritt, and our Knox County Sheriff, Tom Spangler. While I have seen the signs you referred to, I, nor anyone from the Knox County Commission were responsible for posting them nor were we consulted about their placement. I will not be able to respond to specifics regarding the permanent ban of people from entering the City County Building, as again, the PBA handles all aspects of building security and access. If you have additional legal questions, I’m positive Law Director Buuck and the staff of the Knox County Law Department will assist you. I have included each department’s contact information for your reference.
My responsibility as the Chair of the County Commission is to preside over all meetings in a fair and orderly manner. I have said repeatedly that it is not in our purview to manage the policies and procedures of the PBA or Knox County Sheriff’s Office including the operations and access to public buildings. I trust both entities will do everything possible to ensure the safety of our Commissioners, staff and attending members of the public.
In my opinion, your son, and his group of protestors, came to the County Commission meeting with the focus goal of provoking a physical confrontation with law enforcement, to get arrested, and to generate media stories in an effort to further their own image and narratives. Not a single member of the protest group signed up to speak at our public forum or contacted me to ask for time at the Commission meeting – both of which they would be permitted to do. During our meeting, we had a meaningful dialogue about school safety where anyone could have asked for time to address the legislative body, but alas, this group chose not to engage in any of those productive exchange of ideas.
Other members of the public who have previously disrupted our meetings in similar ways have been reprimanded and escorted out by law enforcement. The only difference in the circumstances at this week’s meeting was the disruptive anti-mandate protestors left the meeting and building when asked instead of disobeying the officer’s instructions.
I would like to point out this past December 21st, the Knox County Commission respectfully welcomed your son, Rev. Calvin Skinner to deliver our meeting’s devotional on behalf of Commissioner Lundy. Every Commissioner listened patiently, attentively, and without interruption as Rev. Skinner opined for almost eleven minutes during a portion of our meeting typically reserved for devotionals no more than five minutes, per Commission Rule N.(8.). You can find an archive of the meeting at CTV’s website (https://archive.org/details/co-com-r-267-201221).
While there will always be disagreements and even heated opinions at times, public meetings must be professional and productive. We welcome open engagement and dialogue but will not tolerate the type of disorderly behavior shown by your son and his group of protestors. The Knox County Commission will continue to engage in meaningful dialogue with all members of our community, however, those who demand respect must also be willing to provide it in return. If you have any additional concerns or questions, please contact me.
Sincerely,
Commissioner Larsen Jay
