By Donna Miller  | Bobby Jenkins testifying
in court last week. |
Maurice Luther King, an Albany attorney hired by Randolph School superintendent Bobby Jenkins and his wife Naomi heavily relied on racial bias in the Jenkins' defense. King tried to paint a picture of "a bunch of whites, trying to control blacks." King's excessive use of the word "nigger" in the court room was highly offensive. In a phone conversation prior to the hearing, King told Mrs. Miller "All the actors are white people and I'll prove it." Observations by those listening to testimony for two full days, indicate King did an excellent job in his attempt to characterize members of the PSC and the Attorney's Generals' office as racists. King stated racism so many times, that unless the actual facts were known, it could almost seem that it were true. However, attorneys for the Attorney General all work for Thurbert E. Baker who is black. Three of the (white) witnesses who were subpoenaed by King have wonderful records in civil rights: Dr. Karen Kinsell is an activist and a member of the NAACP and ACLU, Commissioner Simmons worked on a number of civil rights matters during his long career in Washington and Atlanta, and George Anderson is associated with several civil rights groups including Common Cause in Atlanta. As each (white) witness was called to the stand, King pointed out to them that they were white. When D.A. Charles Ferguson was called to the stand he stated, "You are a white man." Ferguson responded, "Obviously." King also referred to whites as "you people," on numerous occasions. King's mantra throughout the 21 hours of testimony was that white people were upset and wanted to control the blacks. He also charged that all the trouble for the Jenkins's came after the school board demanded State Representative Gerald Greene to retire or be fired as a high school history teacher. King's timeline did not agree with events that led up to the PSC suspension of the Jenkins' teaching certificates. It was learned when Fred Wimberly of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) was on the stand, that the agency is actively investigating the Jenkins's for criminal acts. Charles Ferguson testified that he ordered the investigation. Citizens have complained loudly about excessive spending and financial abuses within the school system in 1999 and again in 2001. The BOE voted to terminate Gerald Greene in 2003. As a state representative, Greene had been allowed by the school board to take 3 months off to care for state legislative business. Greene received his full teacher's pay for the months he was gone and he paid to have a substitute teacher teach his classes while he was in session. Several substitute teachers have stated on Greene's behalf that he was very active in classroom matters while he was in Atlanta. Greene was said to have conferred with the substitutes weekly and many times during the week. Greene was also available for student's phone calls while he was staying in Atlanta. The Citizen News published several articles concerning outrageous spending of federal funds especially during 2001 when the school hosted a huge Teen Center circus, complete with radio station live broadcasts and a magician. The grant monies were to be spent on after school programs - instead, a huge chunk of money went to the Teen Center's circus which was held on a Saturday and was open to the general public. Funds were collected from the public. However, monies collected from the event were not deposited until three months later, without any accounting documentation. TCN also published articles of interest regarding Naomi Jenkins and how was being paid for holding many full time positions all at the same time. Other areas of question included reimbursements, billing for travel and meals, preferential contracts, multiple payments for some goods or services, and exorbitant fees. Both Bobby and Naomi have been quick to claim that Gerald Greene was behind all the investigations of the past 3 years, however, citizens and this newspaper has been citing wrong-doing since 1999. It appears rather than Gerald Green retaliating against the Jenkins and the school board as they claim, it appears the school (Jenkins) retaliated against Greene by refusing him leave and forcing him to leave the school system. The purpose of the hearings before Judge John Gatto, and administrative judge from OSAH, was to determine if the PSC acted in a malicious or capricious manner towards the Jenkins. King has yet to show it did. Next week, TCN will tell of testimony heard in court, including admitted overpayments to Naomi Jenkins. |
