The response to recent protests by APD leaders and the city attorney’s office is marked by petty retaliation, contempt for civil liberties and repeatedly shifting explanations, giving locals of all political stripes cause for major concern. Above: a slide in an Aug. 3 APD presentation about its response to late July

On July 2, an APD officer shot and killed Jerry Williams. What’s known, what isn’t and what’s behind the public reaction that followed Above: Demonstrators embrace during a July 9 march through downtown. Photo by Micah Mackenzie On July 2, around 7:12 p.m., Asheville Police Department Sgt. Tyler Radford shot

Council condemns HB2 after some last-minute changes, sketches out the coming budget and gives the go-ahead for a major greenway, over some opposition. Also: bear selfies. Above: Anti-HB2 protesters move onto the space near the Vance Monument after a smaller, pro-HB2 demonstration leaves on April 2. Photo by Max Cooper.

Body cameras, public housing, the fate of a public square and no action on LGBT protections as Council swings back from the end of winter Above: Mayor Esther Manheimer. File photo by Max Cooper. February was an unusually light month for Asheville City Council. So many items from what would

Once again, an important request for public records faces lengthy, unexplained delays from the city of Asheville. It’s time for this disturbing pattern to end Above: City Hall, file photo by Max Cooper. Update: The city of Asheville does track records of police complaints in annual internal affairs audits. On Friday,

Hoping for gridlock, mulling a whitewater park, diagnosing the police department’s woes and more as Asheville City Council tackles a bevy of reports Above: City Manager Gary Jackson, file photo by Max Cooper. As the March 24 Asheville City Council meeting drew near, word emerged that a hearing on a

Council gives controversial Craggy subdivision the go-ahead, some gentry throw a fit about ‘undesirables’ and the police buy more surveillance equipment Above: City-County Plaza, with the Buncombe County Courthouse and City Hall on the snowy morning of Feb. 24 In the morning hours before Asheville City Council’s Feb. 24 meeting,

Exiled from City Hall due to a burst pipe Asheville City Council opposes a development, prepares to duel over a powerful board and gets an earful Above: anti-fracking and Keystone XL pipeline protesters outside the U.S. Cellular Center, Asheville City Council’s temporary location due to a burst pipe in City Hall.

In the controversy over Chief Anderson’s departure, it’s easy to forget the improvements of recent years, changes that must continue Above: the cover of the Asheville Police Department’s strategic plan, unveiled this summer During the discussion about the current turmoil and fraught history of the Asheville Police Department, most of

As APD Chief Anderson declares his retirement amid controversy, the city faces a police department with a fraught history and an uncertain future Above: APD Chief William Anderson, photo by Max Cooper. In the hallowed tradition of big government news announcements, this one came after the clock turned over to