STOCKBRIDGE, Ga. — Stockbridge residents packed City Hall Tuesday evening. Most were there to support a mayor currently under investigation for possibly misusing city funds and property.
“100%. Yes, he’s definitely a target,” Stockbridge resident Jacqueline McKinzie said.
Earlier this month, the city council voted to launch an independent investigation into Jayden Williams’ spending and suspend several of his mayoral privileges.
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The city says they are investigating claims of financial misconduct, including misusing a city vehicle and improper purchases.
“If the staff had not made that recommendation, we would not be looking into this now,” Mayor Pro Tem Elton Alexander said
However, the mayor claims the investigation is politically motivated. Voters elected Williams at the age of 22, becoming the youngest mayor in Stockbridge history.
“This is a case of young people going into the next generation of leaders, but the older generation is not willing to give and pass the mantle,” Williams told Channel 2 Action News last week.
On Tuesday, Councilmember Yolanda Barber proposed expanding the investigation to look at everyone in the city going back to 2020.
“Look at the P-card transactions; they need to be looked at for everybody, not just the mayor,” Barber said.
However, the motion was defeated.
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“Maybe they have something to hide. You know, sometimes people like to throw stones when they live in a glass house‚” Robert Kenner, Mayor Williams’ attorney, said.
“If they’re voting it down, it’s a reason that they’re voting it out because they’re not transparent, because they are not honest, they’re not being fair,” McKinzie said.
However, Mayor Pro Tem Alexander says the expanded investigation would have been a goose chase not based on any complaints.
“It would be justifying a witch hunt and creating a circus,” Alexander said.
The mayor has also filed a civil suit against the city to get his privileges back; his attorney tells Channel 2 Action News they expect to have a hearing on that in the middle of August.
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