Bristol council adopts public censure of Councilman Michael Pollard after admission of false statements

Bristol City Council voted on Jan. 28 to adopt a resolution publicly censuring Councilman Michael Pollard after council members said Pollard admitted to making false statements about city staff that undermined trust in city government.

Mayor Nave opened the council discussion, saying Pollard "has admitted to making false statements about city staff with the intention of damaging their reputations," and described the pattern as having "resulted in a significant erosion of trust." The mayor said issuing a censure was the next step if Pollard did not resign. Vice Mayor Holmes and other council members emphasized the council's duty to protect city employees and the public trust.

The council read a resolution listing specific findings that Pollard violated numbered paragraphs of the city's code of ethics and standards of conduct and formally recorded that censure in the minutes as a public statement of disapproval. The clerk called the roll; the transcript records affirmative votes from Barnum, Holmes, Osborne and Nave. The council manager turned the meeting to the vice mayor to proceed to the next agenda item after the vote. The transcript's entry for Pollard's roll-call response is not clearly recorded in the audio transcript.

During public comment before the council vote, multiple residents urged clemency and unity. Reverend Jackie Nofflin urged the council to "come together and fight for Bristol, Virginia," saying, "Once a man has confessed, apologized, and repented, who am I to judge?" Catherine Elkins said, "I've never known Michael to ever tell a falsehood," and James Christopher Brown described Pollard's past public service and said Pollard "does not deserve a public censure." Todd Crusenberry and Ricky (Rick) Watts also spoke in Pollard's defense and urged forgiveness or, in Watts's case, asked Pollard to consider resigning if he could not restore public trust.

Pollard addressed council questions about his signed statement and said, "I said something that I should not have. I do stand by that." The resolution called on Pollard to publicly acknowledge misconduct, take appropriate steps to remedy harm and demonstrate renewed commitment to ethical service.

The censure is a formal statement of disapproval and is recorded in the official minutes; the resolution text, as read at the meeting, lists the specific code-of-ethics and standards-of-conduct paragraphs the council found to have been violated. No criminal or administrative penalty was imposed as part of the censure itself; the measure is a public reprimand and part of the official record. The council moved on to its finance policy review following the action.