Onslow school board takes big step to remove Whitfield, but its a long way from over

An Onslow County school board member facing removal from office had little to say for his defense during Monday's historic amotion hearing.

The Onslow County Board of Education is seeking amotion of member Eric Whitfield for inappropriate and unethical behavior while serving on the board. The hearing took place at the Eastern North Carolina Academic Skills Center with tightening security measures in place to ensure the safety of those attending and participating in the hearing.

Although Whitfield was present and represented himself, he did not present any witnesses towards his defense and did little cross-examination of the amotion counsel's witnesses.

In fact, Whitfield did not stay for the entirety of the hearing, leaving at some point in the afternoon, forgoing his opportunity to give a closing argument.

Now that the hearing is over, the hearing officer, Valecia McDowell, an attorney with Moore & Van Allen, will have 30 days to present her recommendations to the board. The board will then decide Whitfield's fate.

The hearing will be available to watch on the Onslow County Schools YouTube page, however, the district is in the process of editing out inappropriate language and other parts of the trial that are unable to be shown.

Here are some of the biggest takeaways from the hearing.

If Whitfield loses, it's not over

The board can remove Whitfield through an amotion, but amotions can only be undertaken to address serious misconduct and unethical behavior.

The tradition dates back 100 years, according to McDowell, though it's extremely rare in North Carolina and could be the first time an elected official in Onslow is removed through the process.

However, if the board chooses to remove Whitfield, it's not over. He has the right to appeal through the North Carolina Supreme Court. In addition to his right to appeal, Whitfield would also be eligible to run for office again as removal through motion does not disqualify him for future campaigns.

Through a WITN Facebook post related to Monday's hearing when a commenter asked about updates, Whitfield responded, “There really won’t be any updates. They are going to kick me out. There will be an appeal that will probably take months then I will be restored to office. So there really won’t be any news to report.”

In order to remove Whitfield, the board must find he committed at least one of three violations such as offenses so dishonorable that he was rendered unfit to serve in office; committing offenses amounting to noncriminal misconduct in office; and/or committing offenses that are both criminal and constituted misconduct while sitting on the board, according to McDowell.

What witnesses took the stand?

The amotion counsel, led by Laura Crumpler, an attorney with Poyner Spruill LLP Attorneys at Law, argued Whitfield's unethical actions began the day he was voted into office in November 2020.

Several witnesses were called to testify about their experiences with Whitfield while the council presented video and written documentation as evidence of his alleged misconduct.

Former OCS employee Kelli Muse, who was cyberstalked by Whitfield, was unavailable to testify due to a no-contact order between them. Whitfield was criminally convicted for cyberstalking Muse in April.

However, a previously recorded audio testimony by Muse was played during the hearing.

The amotion counsel first called Kristin Greer, an Onslow woman who was allegedly targeted by Whitfield after she spoke out against him being elected. Whitfield posted photos of Greer's minor children on his Facebook page at the end of last year, which he admitted to and apologized for during a February board meeting.

Greer said Whitfield has made her and her children "anxious," and she has found some of his YouTube videos "disturbing."

After Greer, another woman who had allegedly been harassed by Whitfield took the stand. Kylene Rose said she received a random email from Whitfield on December 31, which she thinks was due to her praise for Greer speaking out.

Rose spoke on an occasion where Whitfield allegedly showed up in her neighborhood, saying it terrified her. She also testified she has armed herself with a baseball bat and a taser by her door for protection.

OCS Chief of Human Resources CJ Korenek then took the stand, as she received many of the complaints against Whitfield, specifically from Muse. However, human resources does not have jurisdiction over Whitfield and the board.

The amotion counsel had Korenek review many of the complaints she received, including much of the correspondence with Muse.

Several YouTube videos Whitfield posted were shown by the motion counsel during the trial enacting skits that were supposedly fictional where Whitfield used words like "stupid b**ch" and a derogatory term used to describe a person who is mentally handicapped when depicting Muse.

Whitfield did not use Muse's exact name in the videos, amotion counsel argued his intent was to use characters and real-life events he had with her.

The amotion counsel also discussed the books Whitfield published for sale on Amazon that was about his interactions with Muse.

Korenek said the county did issue Muse a "right to sue letter," and Muse has filed a federal lawsuit against both Whitfield and the district.

How did Whitfield handle the hearing?

Before Monday's hearing, Whitfield last attended a board meeting on June 7, calling the trial a "silly circus show" that is going to cost the taxpayers thousands of dollars. Whitfield did not attend the final board meeting for the school year held on June 29.

Whitfield's opening argument was short, and he said he planned to speak very little, so as to not get himself in trouble due to the no contact order.

He did argue, however, that the amotion proceedings were essentially unfair, as the plaintiff is also the "jury and executioner."

McDowell explained that amotion hearing's law states that the decision-maker has to be the elected body, and that this is part of the body's responsibility.

Whitfield did not respond to anything the amotion counsel had presented in their opening statement, which they said Whitfield's actions "rendered a lack of public trust in the school board."

The cross-examination Whitfield did participate in was kept short. He attempted to get Korenek to admit he had not personally been a burden on her workload, though she said the matter itself has been a huge distraction, and has influenced the public's perception of the school board.

OCS Superintendent Barry Collins also testified.

Whitfield called Monday’s hearing “unAmerican” and says a “real court” is the proper place to handle such disputes.

Reporter Morgan Starling can be reached at mstarling@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on The Daily News: Onslow County Schools' amotion hearing for Eric Whitfield