Indian Trail council adopts censure of Councilmember Todd Barber after contested hearing

The Indian Trail Town Council voted to adopt a resolution of censure for Councilmember Todd Barber after a May 13 hearing that focused on whether Barber had administrative or editorial control of a local Facebook page called the Indian Trail Weasel Report. The motion to adopt the resolution, based on an investigation by the law firm Parker and Poe, passed 3–1 with one councilmember recused.

The hearing included more than an hour of statements from Barber disputing the investigator's findings and presenting an affidavit from Lisa Barber, who said she has sole administrative privileges and editorial control of the Facebook page. "I have not posted on the page since becoming the Weasel Report," Councilmember Todd Barber said during his statement, and he supplied documents and affidavits to support his comments.

Town Attorney Melanie Cox told the council the censure hearing was the proper venue to receive Barber's response and explained that the council could consider documents presented at the hearing if members voted to accept them for consideration. The investigation report cited circumstantial "digital trail" evidence and raised questions about perceived links between Barber and the page; Barber disputed those in his remarks and said the investigator did not interview him.

Council discussion included repeated questions about whether additional materials received that day should be accepted for the hearing record and whether accepting them required a council vote. Some council members said they had not had time to review documents received late. Parker and Poe's report and evidence referenced in the hearing were expressly cited by councilmembers who moved for censure.

After deliberation, the council voted to adopt the draft censure resolution provided in the meeting packet. The roll-call vote as recorded in the meeting was: Yes — (three members); No — (one member); Recused — (one member). The council did not read the final ordinance into the minutes during the meeting; the item remained on the agenda packet as drafted.

Public comment at the meeting included multiple speakers who criticized Barber's conduct and the Weasel Report page, and several council members described staff morale concerns they said were related to the social media activity. Barber and supporters argued the investigation relied on circumstantial evidence and that the town had not proven a code-of-conduct violation.

The council chair said the resolution of censure would be entered into the official record of the meeting. The censure is a nonbinding political sanction placed in the minutes; the town did not adopt any disciplinary removal action during the meeting.

Votes at a glance - Motion: "Adopt resolution of censure for Councilmember Todd Barber based on the investigation by Parker and Poe." Mover: Mayor Pro Tim Gay. Outcome: approved. Vote tally as recorded in the meeting: yes 3, no 1, recused 1.

Background - The council ordered an outside investigation after complaints about social media posts tied to an account previously titled as an "elect Todd Barber" page that later was renamed the Indian Trail Weasel Report. The investigation and its methodology were discussed during the hearing; the report and late-submitted documents were a focus of council debate on admissibility.

What’s next - The censure resolution will remain in the council's minutes as official record. No further disciplinary action was taken at the meeting; councilmembers discussed the town's code of conduct and possible next steps only in open session.