Two of the lawsuits against the city of Graham, Graham Police Chief Kristy Cole and Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson have merged.
The suits were both filed on Nov. 2 after officers with the Graham Police Department and sheriff's office used pepper spray during the "I am Change" march to the polls held Oct. 31.
The first lawsuit was filed on behalf of Future Alamance, Sylvester Allen Jr, Dejuana Bigelow and Tabatha Davis. The second lawsuit was filed by Rev. Gregory Drumwright, the lead organizer of the march, in addition to Edith Ann Jones and Justice for the Next Generation.
On Dec. 4, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina ruled that the cases should be consolidated. Both lawsuits stemmed from the same event, and the court ruled they examine a "common question of law."
On Dec. 11, the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint in the now consolidated lawsuit. In the new complaint, a number of others joined the lawsuit including Alamance Alliance for Justice, Olivia Davis, Talaun Woods, Angela Willis, Quenclyn Ellison, Faith Cook, Malanie Mitchell, Janet Nesbitt, Ernestine Lewis Ward, Edith Ward, Avery Harvey, Ashley Reed Batten and several children who are included in the case through their parents.
The lawsuit says at least three plaintiffs and one additional member of Future Alamance planned to vote after the march, which occurred on the last day of early voting in North Carolina. The lawsuit says these people were prevented from voting due to the actions of the police department and sheriff's office.
The lawsuit says Johnson and Cole violated the first and fourteenth amendments of the U.S. Constitution, the Voting Rights Act and the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, which was passed after the Civil War to protect civil rights.
The lawsuit asks the court to "declare that defendants’ intimidating conduct — including discharging pepper spray at peaceful protesters on their way to vote — is contrary to law" and "declare that the harassment or intimidation of voters at or outside of the polls or on their way to the polls during the 2020 general election is contrary to law."
It asks for compensatory and punitive damages and for the payment of attorneys' fees.
On Oct. 31, the "I am Change" march to the polls was broken up when police officers and sheriff's deputies used pepper spray on the crowd.
The first time pepper spray was used, police said it was because the crowd was in the middle of the road, and the permit they had received ahead of the march only allowed them to be on the sidewalks. The march organizers had obtained prior permission to kneel for 8 minutes and 46 seconds to remember George Floyd. Police said they waited nine minutes before using the pepper spray.
Later in the event, both the sheriff's office and police department used pepper spray after a disagreement over a gas generator, which wasn't allowed on the property.
Twenty-three people were arrested, including the march organizers.
— Breaking news reporter Rachel Berry can be reached at rberry@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @racheldberry.
