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NAACP branch and speakers allege discrimination after road department termination; speakers raise vehicle-safety incidents
Summary
During public comment at the Salem County commissioners meeting, the county NAACP president alleged racial discrimination and challenged the termination of a road department supervisor, and other commenters described a pattern of county vehicle incidents and disparate treatment. Commissioners did not respond substantively during public comment.
Nelson Carney Jr., president of the Salem County NAACP, used the public comment period to raise concerns about the termination of a county road department supervisor and broader hiring and workplace equity practices in Salem County, saying his branch viewed the termination as discriminatory.
“People of color, the hiring practice, especially with the county… People of color, the hiring practice, especially with the county. Mister Grady Busch was the only person of color that was a supervisor, and we feel the Salem County branch feels discriminated,” Carney said. He criticized the length of paid leave followed by termination for the individual he identified and said the branch would continue to press the county on equity issues.
Another commenter who identified himself as a long-time county employee described a series of incidents involving county vehicles and staff conduct and said he believed the disciplinary outcomes were inconsistent. He recounted multiple events — including a county-issued vehicle that was stolen after being left running, incidents of staff smoking marijuana in vehicles on duty, and a heavy-vehicle collision with a utility pole — and asked why he alone faced termination after his vehicle was stolen.
A third speaker, identified as Jim from Bridgetown in Mannington Township, criticized the county’s treatment of people of color and urged the board to treat all employees fairly. The public comment period included a remembrance announcement and several community event notices before these statements.
The board acknowledged the comments but did not take action during the meeting. The transcript records the speakers’ allegations and complaints; the board scheduled no immediate follow-up action on those remarks during the session.
The speakers named the terminated employee (referred to in the transcript as Grady Butts or Grady Busch in differing places) and alleged a perceived pattern of unequal discipline; the transcript includes no county response explaining personnel decisions or disciplinary records.
