CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Queen City News is digging deeper into the drama between Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings and former City Councilman Tariq Bokhari, which led to a reported six-figure settlement from the city.
We received 14 pages worth of text messages exchanged between Tariq and Chief Jennings during the spring and summer of 2024. In them, Bokhari told Jennings he planned to "cripple his legacy" and call for his firing.
Fallout continues over CMPD chief’s reported settlement amid threat allegationsOne of them, sent by Bokhari on July 6, 2024, read:
"You've made a terrible error in judgement my friend. I hate what comes next."
The message was in regard to a disagreement about whether officers should be allowed to wear outer carrier vests. Chief Jennings claimed they look too militaristic, while Bokhari put the pressure on to increase access.
Another message Bokhari sent the same day said the following:
"I'll be demanding your resignation starting Monday. I'll be hammering you from the press, the private sector, the foundations, the general assembly, congress, and several high profile national organizations."
He continued, "I will not stop and it will cripple your legacy you've worked so hard for."
"He's out of the scope of his responsibilities," said Charlotte-Mecklenburg NAACP President Corine Mack. "A violation of the ethics clause. He's a city councilperson. He's not the chief. He's not the mayor. He's not the city manager. So he has no right to be telling someone what vests to purchase."
Those messages, in part, prompted Mack to file a complaint with the city.
"I believe it's important that this never happens again," she said.
Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles also showed support for the chief at a press conference held Wednesday.
"The Chief was publicly attacked by a former council member, who stated his intent was to damage his reputation and end his career," said the mayor. "I owe the Chief an apology for not publicly supporting him then."
Council Chaos: Watlington blasts Charlotte City Council as “immoral and corrupt”Interim City Attorney Anthony Fox would not address the alleged payout to Jennings.
"We're not going to confirm or deny," he said. "The law provides certain confidentiality of closed sessions, as well as personnel privacy matters and we're going to respect the law."
Now, Tariq Bokhari's wife, Krista Bokhari, is calling for an ethics complaint against Fox. She said the city shouldn't have settled because Jennings didn't have a case, claiming it didn't meet the standards for defamation.
Krista released a statement, saying in part, "The city of charlotte had no legal exposure to a claim by Chief Jennings, yet Vi Lyles, Marcus Jones and Anthony Fox relied on an improperly used procedural technicality and these additional tactics (disregard for the rule of law and dissenting opinions) to approve taxpayer dollars for their friend, and in doing so performed the unethical, immoral and potentially illegal actions they are now exposed to."
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fraternal Order of Police said taxpayers should be outraged over this settlement. They're preparing to hold a no confidence vote against Chief Jennings.
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