Fired Fayetteville police employee speaks; considering litigation fayobserver.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from fayobserver.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Some in our community believe the Fayetteville Police Department is disproportionately targeting Black drivers for stops and vehicle searches. Police Chief Gina Hawkins pushes back on the allegation, saying the data on stops can be misleading and her officers are just doing their jobs.
This issue dubbed “Driving While Black” boils down to trust. Trust is the kind of currency that community policing is meant to shore up between officers and the public.
So I was surprised to learn the Police Department this past week got rid of one of its best community liaisons, Lisa Jayne, a 10-year-veteran. She is known around churches, nonprofits, rec centers and multiple organizations in Fayetteville as the program coordinator for Operation Ceasefire. She moves deftly between diverse communities, a critical skill in a city like ours.