Noose's existence at office verified

Section: SoundOFF

Meghan Gordon

Jefferson Parish administrators located a noose, a whipping post sign and other items hanging in a sewerage superintendent's office that were brought to light this week by a public works employee who called them racially offensive and designed to intimidate black workers.

Tim Whitmer, chief aide to Parish President Aaron Broussard, confirmed Thursday that the items existed, though he said they didn't exactly fit the description given by Terrence Lee, a black parish worker who made the allegation Wednesday alongside civil rights lawyer Danatus King.

The parish removed the objects and launched an investigation to interview about 40 employees at all levels who regularly pass through an area outside Superintendent Bill Hartline's office at the Rheem Building on Jefferson Highway. FBI agents determining whether the allegations fit the parameters of a federal hate crime took the items into custody.

Calling the allegations of racial intimidation appalling, Broussard said Darryl Ward, a black deputy chief administrative assistant, would oversee a thorough and swift inquiry. Broussard distributed a message to all employees, instructing them to document any offensive or harassing activity in the workplace and send it in a sealed envelope directly to his office.

"I take these matters very seriously and will not tolerate or condone such activities," Broussard's letter says.

He also urged the Parish Council to enact an ordinance mirroring the federal hate crimes law, allowing the parish to refer harassment allegations to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office for criminal investigation on top of internal disciplinary action.

New revelations promised

But speaking carefully, Broussard hinted during a news conference that another explanation might surface for a wooden contraption from which hung a knotted, looped rope.

"There are going to be some facts revealed about these objects that, when you get more information about them, will help explain what is now a question mark," he said when asked whether a rope tied in the shape of a noose would ever be deemed acceptable by the parish's antiharassment policy. "But I will leave it at that until all the interviews are complete."

Earlier Thursday, Whitmer described a portion of the object outside the frame of photos taken by Lee in 2005 and shown to reporters this week. Whitmer called it a "butt-kicking machine" that propels a boot upward and outward when someone pulls the rope.

He also confirmed finding a sign saying, "BILL'S WHIPPING POST." A dart board that Lee said had an image of a black man pinned in his groin instead bore the image of a white man when found by administrators Wednesday, Whitmer said.

King, who said he planned to file a civil rights lawsuit seeking damages on behalf of Lee, said nothing could explain away the iconic image of a rope tied in the shape of a noose.

"I don't think we have to quibble about what is what. The evidence is there," King said. "Really, this is disheartening and disappointing and frustrating and infuriating to hear now that they're trying to use doublespeak and deceive people and explain away these objects."

Hartline, the supervisor accused of displaying the objects for at least the six years since Lee has worked under him, was not on duty Thursday. Broussard said the parish took interim disciplinary action against him but, citing civil service restrictions, declined to reveal when Hartline would return to work or whether he was receiving pay.

Hartline could not be reached for comment.

Mum on disciplinary action

Broussard said Lee's claims coincide with disciplinary proceedings against the worker for actions he would not disclose. He said supervisors conducted a hearing last week against Lee and scheduled the discipline to begin Monday.

King said Lee was disciplined for insubordination and suspended without pay until Nov. 30.

Out of an abundance of caution, Broussard said, the parish deferred the discipline until the investigation concludes.

"I want to make sure that prejudice was not the basis of any allegations made on the disciplinary hearing," he said.

Lee has taken emergency annual leave since last week, but the parish informed him he could return to work Thursday. He did not, administrators said.

King said Lee plans to remain home because he fears the workplace would be too hostile after the allegations.

Louisiana NAACP President Ernest Johnson said the incident is especially troubling on the heels of the "Jena Six" case, which inspired one of the nation's largest civil rights protests in years. Six black students were accused of attacking a white student amid racial tension at Jena High School in LaSalle Parish, sparked in part by a noose hung in a tree outside the school.

Johnson said he predicts more harassment in light of the strong national media attention given to the Jena rally. He said a noose also reportedly was found Thursday hanging in a Ruston hardware store in Lincoln Parish.

"It appears we have an outbreak of these hanging nooses, and unless we see some serious enforcement of these incidents by the U.S. Department of Justice, I think we're going to see more of them," he said.