Cop speaks up about missing drugs in evidence room, then is fired, NC suit says
A complaint filed April 23 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina argues Wilson Bunn's firing from the police department in Brevard, North Carolina, violates his First Amendment rights.
Bunn and the Southern States Police Benevolent Association are suing Brevard Police Chief Thomas Jordan, accusing him of retaliating against Bunn, who voiced concerns about potentially 253 missing pieces of evidence, including 27 different narcotics. The filing also names City Manager Wilson Hooper as a defendant.
Bunn, a member of the PBA, found items were missing from the evidence room in June, then turned to the nonprofit organization for legal help in August, according to the complaint. The group represents more than 70,000 current and former law enforcement officers.
Bunn grew 'concerned that BPD was not taking the issue seriously, and sought legal advice as to his obligations to report missing evidence to the appropriate authorities,' the complaint says.
He spoke with the PBA's legal counsel, who then alerted the Brevard city attorney of the missing evidence, according to the complaint.
This made Jordan angry, the filing says.
In retaliation, Bunn was fired by Jordan in December and later blamed for the missing evidence, according to the lawsuit. Jordan specifically accused Bunn of stealing a jar of marijuana, the lawsuit says.
Jordan, in an emailed statement to McClatchy News, said that the department is aware of the lawsuit but hasn't been served with the filing as of the afternoon of April 28.
'We are confident that the City has followed the proper procedures and processes in addressing any personnel matters, 'Jordan said. 'When the suit arrives, we will respond via the normal legal channels and allow the courts to settle the matter.'
Becky McCann, the communications coordinator for Brevard, which is about a 30-mile drive southwest from Asheville, shared the same statement with McClatchy News via email on April 28.
Bunn and the Southern States PBA are represented by Attorney Jeffrey Steven Warren, of Ellis & Winters LLP in Raleigh.
'The PBA and Sergeant Bunn look forward to proving their case in court,' Warren said in an email to McClatchy News on April 28.
A disorganized evidence room
Bunn joined the Brevard's police force as a detective in November 2023, when he found the department's evidence room was disorganized, according to the lawsuit.
After realizing the room was 'in disarray,' Bunn and another detective volunteered to reorganize it, the filing says.
At the time, Bunn was aware that mismanaged evidence could lead to the potential legal consequences, according to the complaint.
He started working in law enforcement as an Asheville Police Department officer in 2012.
That's when the department was 'in the midst of a crisis' involving about 115 items missing from its evidence room, Warren noted in the lawsuit.
The Asheville Police Department's former manager was sentenced to 10 months in prison in June 2014 after he was accused of stealing drugs from the room, the Carolina Public Press reported.
'Beginning his law enforcement career in this environment,' Warren wrote in the lawsuit, 'Bunn became sensitive to evidence storage and security issues.'
In 2018, Bunn became a deputy sheriff for the Henderson County Sheriff's Office, according to the lawsuit. While with the sheriff's office, he worked as a Homeland Security Task Force officer and in other capacities.
Throughout his career, Bunn hadn't been 'reprimanded, disciplined, or placed under investigation,' the lawsuit says.
His firing
Bunn was exercising his free speech rights when notifying the Southern States PBA about missing evidence, and it ended up costing him his job with the Brevard Police Department, according to the complaint.
With the lawsuit, Bunn and the Southern States PBA are asking for a jury trial, an unspecified amount in damages and further relief.
The PBA's North Carolina division has more than 17,000 members — making it the largest organization of its kind in the state, according to the organization's April 21 news release issued on the lawsuit.
David Rose, the president of PBA's North Carolina division, said in a statement that 'it is essential that public employees be able to speak freely on matters of public concern without fear of retaliatory dismissal.'
John Midgette, the North Carolina division's executive director, said in a statement, 'We have never before witnessed such egregious violations of state, federal and constitutional law against a law enforcement officer by government officials.'
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