Petition filed in Wake County court to remove Sheriff Baker from office

A group of Wake County residents wants Sheriff Gerald Baker out before December, when he is already scheduled to leave office after losing his bid for re-election.

A petition filed Monday in Wake County Superior Court accuses Baker of corruption and unethical conduct and seeks a court hearing to have him removed.

The complaint, obtained by The News & Observer, follows public controversy over the sheriff’s actions after the death of Deputy Ned Byrd, a K-9 officer who was shot and killed while on duty in August.

But Wednesday afternoon, Baker publicly responded with a motion to dismiss the petition in court. His lawyers say the petition from six Wake County residents does not have legitimate legal basis, calling it “a media stunt to manufacture a campaign agenda against the current incumbent.”

Lawyers for Baker argue that the petition did not receive prior approval from the Wake County district attorney or county attorney to be filed, which is required by North Carolina law in order to proceed in court.

District Attorney Lorrin Freeman signed an affidavit Wednesday, released by the Sheriff’s Office, stating that she did not approve the petition.

The petition was prepared and filed by Jeffrey Dobson, who is a Raleigh attorney and Freeman’s Republican opponent in the November election.

Baker, who was elected in 2018, lost a July Democratic primary runoff for re-election.

Over six pages, the petitioners cite Baker’s alleged retaliatory transfers of several K-9 officers, which were widely seen as demotions, according to WRAL, which reported the petition first. The petition also lists accusations related to firings, promotions, demotions and inactions.

A North Carolina statute allows a judge to remove a sheriff or police officer from office if at least five voters petition for a hearing to determine if the accused is guilty of the following actions, according to NC General Statute 128-1:

▪ Willful misconduct or maladministration in office

▪ Corruption

▪ Extortion

▪ Conviction of a felony

▪ Intoxication, or upon conviction of being intoxicated

The six-page petition states Baker has been sued 16 times since becoming sheriff, including by current and former Sheriff’s Office employees.

This includes two lawsuits filed in 2020 and 2022 by Wake County inmates who allege mistreatment in jail.

The petitioners

“Our goal is ultimately to let the justice system and the appropriate processes in place take hold and let it run its course as it’s supposed to,” said Russell Copersito, 38, one of the petitioners and a former Raleigh police officer.

Copersito told The N&O he retired in 2017 from being a police officer for medical reasons and grew dissatisfied with Baker as sheriff based on conversations with people in Raleigh law enforcement.

“I don’t know Baker personally; I’m not out to get anybody,” he said. “It’s just that hearing what’s been done and reading what’s been said doesn’t sit well with me, and. as an outside observer, something needs to be done.”

In addition to Copersito and his wife, Jennifer, the petition was signed by Jason Vasilko, Theresa Watkins Wainwright, Therese Potter and Brandi Swope.

On a memorial page online for Byrd, Swope described herself in a comment as a spouse of an officer in the Wake County Sheriff’s Office and the Apex Police Department.

Vasilko, whose did not return an email and phone call to his business, lists himself on LinkedIn as a former Wake deputy.

Debate over investigation

Dobson told The N&O in an interview Wednesday that he believes that the Sheriff “can and already has done substantial damage in that office” that he believes he will continue to so in his remaining months.

The course of action taken by Dobson is one he said he has never seen used in the county before.

Copersito said Freeman told him and others it was not worth her office’s time to investigate Baker for alleged misconduct upon their request because of his pending departure.

“While I understand that there are those within the department that are hurting and who believe a new administration needs to be put in place in short order, I do not believe my getting involved in a removal proceeding against Sheriff Baker is in the best interest of justice at this time,” Freeman said in a Sept. 6 email to Copersito, which was obtained by The N&O. “The electorate has heard the concerns of those within the agency and has ensured that a new administration will be forthcoming.”

In response, Copersito was unsatisfied and said he sought out Dobson because he was running against Freeman and could figure out a legal recourse to bring action against Baker.

“It doesn’t matter if he’s 80 or 90 days away from (leaving office) or not. If he did wrong, he did wrong,” said Copersito. “As a Wake County voter, we have that ability to call it into action.

In another email to Copersito, Freeman said that she had not received any information that would justify Baker’s removal and said the case was “legally unsustainable.”

But Dobson believes that the District Attorney is refusing to cooperate with them despite being presented evidence that supports the petition’s case.

Wake Sheriff’s controversial actions

Byrd’s family members have accused Baker of retaliation after he reassigned three officers who worked with Byrd. One has since been tasked to work as a detention officer at the county jail, which the family believes Baker did to retaliate against him for allegedly excluding Baker’s involvement in Byrd’s funeral.

“[P]ersonnel moves within the Wake County Sheriff’s Office have taken place and result from the needs of this office in serving this county,” Baker said previously in a statement. “Additionally, reassignments are a necessary part of organizational and career development, and, broadens the experiences of deputies as they advance in their law enforcement careers.”