Pikeville's Lock fired - Wayne-Wilson News Leader, Fremont, NC

The firing comes just weeks after town clerk Kathie Fields was suspended in connection with an investigation of town financial records, initiated by Mr. Lock.

But Mayor Herb Sieger is quick to say that the firing is not a direct result of Mrs. Fields’s suspension.

He says that the town initially began to question Mr. Lock in the position of town administrator because of the incident with Mrs. Fields, but that other situations had warranted the firing. He said that Mr. Lock’s decisions in town matters after that point had gone downhill.

During the closed session portion of the meeting, Mr. Lock was asked to present written responses to several questions the town board had posed to him in another closed session earlier in the week.

After the board reconvened in an open session, Commissioner Lyman Galloway moved to terminate Mr. Lock’s employment with the town, and Commissioner Dennis Lewis seconded the motion.

The motion succeeded with a 3-2 vote. Commissioners Edith McClenny and Vance Greeson voted against the termination. Mr. Lock was then asked to return all pertinent town materials to the board.

The firing leaves the town currently operating without either a town administrator or town clerk to handle town business. Clerks from several local towns, including Fremont and Black Creek, have been coming to help the town in its daily operations.

Mr. Sieger said the SBI and Wayne County Sheriff’s investigation into town records is still not complete, and Mrs. Fields cannot return to work until the investigation is over.

Earlier this fall, the board agreed to go ahead and hire a new town administrator before elections would change the board, despite a worry Mr. Sieger had about the change of the board affecting the decision.

Mr. Sieger indicated during the public meeting last week that the town had perhaps made a mistake in hiring Mr. Lock, a feeling he reiterated Monday morning.

“He had a good resume and good references,” he said. “But sometimes you make mistakes. We made a mistake, and now we have to clean up the mess.”

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Issue of 13 December 2007

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