From Staff Reports

Following June’s protests in downtown Asheville, at one point prompting Mayor Esther Manheimer to declare a citywide state of emergency, someone reportedly left garbage and a sign at her home on the Fourth of July.

The Asheville Citizen Times on July 7 reported that the newspaper had been notified by an anonymous caller that “a sign calling for Mayor Esther Manheimer’s resignation and garbage representing a destroyed medic station were among items left by protesters at the mayor’s home on July 4.”

Further, the story stated that the ACT “received anonymous phone calls and an email July 6 with pictures from people who said they held Manheimer responsible for the destruction of a medic station by the Asheville Police Department, as well as its handling of the protest in which rubber bullets and tear gas were fired at peaceful protesters. One caller cited an incident where protester Cassidy Doyle’s skull was fractured by what she and others said was a police projectile.

“The sign at Manheimer’s home read, ‘Esther, you made this mess now resign!’”

The story also noted that when an ACT  reporter later asked the mayor “if she filed a police report, Manheimer said she emailed City Attorney Brad Branham and City Manager Debra Campbell. They forwarded the message to police, though Manheimer said she told them nothing more needed to be done and wasn’t sure it was cataloged as a police report. Manheimer declined further comment.

“APD spokeswoman Lindsay Regner said police could find no report,” the  ACT stated.