Another accusation of racist comments against a now-former commissioner was disclosed at Wednesday’s Cayce City Council meeting. The members then voted to launch a formal investigation.

Marion Hutson, who resigned as an appointed volunteer to the Cayce Historical Museum Commission on Nov. 12, was accused of saying that Columbia didn’t need “another colored person as mayor” in an email from an anonymous city employee. Council voted 3-2 not to dismiss Hutson after that email was read aloud at its last meeting on Nov. 9.

On Wednesday, Mayor Elise Partin read a new email sent to council by an unnamed citizen.

The email described a September visit by Hutson to the person’s home in support of Hunter Sox, the recently elected councilman that Hutson was out supporting on the day of Cayce’s Nov. 2 municipal election when the other alleged comments took place.

“The appointed volunteer used the term 'colored people' several times in speaking to me about 'the need for change in Cayce city government.’” Partin read. “Although our conversation was mostly about the city council race, he seemed to include both the Historical Commission and city government in his criticism and then his comments about there being 'too many colored people' in positions of responsibility. While not calling anyone by name, I also remember him making a derisive comment about someone having a 'picture of Obama' hanging in their home.”

The Chronicle called but was unable to reach Hutson.

The reading of the email came during discussion of motions from three council members to formally investigate the situation surrounding the first accusation against Hutson. Councilman Tim James spoke first, reasoning that the commissioner’s voluntary departure made this unnecessary.

“In light of the accepted resignation that has come from Marion Hutson, and certainly barring other issues regarding this matter, and most importantly in hopes that our wonderful city can begin the process of healing and taking time to reflect upon the great values that we do have ... there is no longer a need for review or investigation,” he said.

The mayor then read the statement before calling for a motion to conduct the formal investigation.

“We need to know if there are other instances or others involved,” Partin said. “I am concerned that there are other incidents we should know about that have disturbed our staff or citizens that we need to address. We need to know how far this goes.” 

Council voted unanimously to begin the investigation and tasked City Attorney Danny Crowe with conducting it, asking him to bring back a proposal with suggestions on how to move forward.

During public comment, three people, all white, spoke in defense of Hutson’s right to due process. One of the three said Hutson was never informed by council about the allegations before it discussed them publicly.

One of the three people who spoke in Hutson’s defense was Museum Commission Chairman Archie Moore. He questioned the quickness with which council was moving to add a new commissioner, complaining that current members weren’t consulted. Partin said later in the meeting that this has been standard procedure for a while.

“This is a concerted attempt by the city administration to exclude the museum leadership from these important aspects of the museum operation,” Moore said.

Ann Bailey-Robinson, a Black former councilwoman who lost her seat to Sox, also spoke during public comment, expressing disappointment with “how things are going in Cayce since the election.”

“How many times has this happened already?” she asked. “That's what I'm concerned about. How many times has this already happened? And council, what are you willing to tolerate?”

When appointments to the Museum Commission and Cayce Beautification Foundation came up for approval, Sox made a motion to delay them until the first meeting in January. The motion passed 3-2, with Sox, James and Councilman Phil Carter — who voted not to dismiss Hutson last week — voting for it.

Sox referenced Moore’s concerns and said that waiting until the new year will “give us more time to review and better understand the committee and commission concepts.”

“I just don't feel comfortable adding anyone to this at the moment until we as a council all fully understand these processes,” he added.

The mayor noted that the appointee up for approval for the Museum Commission, Marcy Link Hayden, is a member of the Pee Dee Indian Tribe and that adding her would further diversify the membership. 

Kelly Wuest, the proposed appointee to the Beautification Foundation, ran for City Council this month.

In further discussion, Partin questioned the optics of delaying the appointments in the wake of the Hutson controversy.

“It would concern me to postpone these and maybe not to ever end up appointing either one of these members because of what it may look like,” she said. “One was a candidate for council. And one is Native American. I'm not sure what message we're sending.”

The meeting was frequently contentious.

At the start, Carter complained that Mayor Pro Tem James “Skip” Jenkins had changed his mind about stepping down from the position and that Partin had promised the position to him. Both Partin and Jenksins disputed Carter’s version of their conversations, and council voted unanimously to retain Jenkins in the role.

When council opened up the floor to comments from its members before adjourning to executive session, Partin said she wanted to get to the bottom of whether Sox sent an email to a citizen about items the body discussed during last week’s executive session, which she said is illegal. Sox didn’t respond and seconded the motion to adjourn.