A glass divider at the Garland town hall was broken during an argument that reportedly broke out between town clerk Alyssa Hale and a disgruntled resident, Quentin Highsmith, who was cited in the incident.
Town hall closed all week
due to altercation, damage
GARLAND — The mayor has resigned, town hall is now closed for the week, a partition inside the town’s office has been shattered and a resident has been cited for involvement in that incident and a reported heated exchange that occurred between him and the town clerk.
And tonight, the Garland Board of Commissioners are expected to take steps to replace Mayor Austin Brown, who resigned unexpectedly Friday. Brown, in the middle of his second term, cited personal reasons for his departure, leaving the southern Sampson town without a clear leader amid ongoing challenges in local governance.
In an online statement released by Brown shortly after notifying the town commissioners of his resignation, he prayed that members of the community would trust the town commissioners to help guide them through his departure.
“This is not goodbye by any means; it’s an I will see you later. I will continue to support our town as I have always and pray for its continued growth,” he wrote in a social media post.
In the wake of Brown’s resignation, the town faces several immediate challenges, including selecting a new mayor. They can do that, county elections officials said, through the appointment of the mayor pro-tem as mayor, if no commissioner wishes to take the role, or by choosing to appoint a mayor for the duration of the term.
”The town does not have the option of a special election as they are in an election year,” explained Niya Rayner, director of the Sampson County Board of Elections. “They may either appoint a new mayor or select the mayor pro-tem. Either way, the position will be temporary, and the person selected will have to run in this year’s election,” Rayner explained.
If the board chooses to select a member of the current board, that will then lead to them having to select a new commissioner to fill the unexpired term.
Another issue facing the town is the closure of its town hall through Jan. 10 due an altercation between Garland Town Clerk Alyssa Hale and a disgruntled town resident, Quentin Highsmith, an incident that occurred Friday and brought Sampson County Sheriff’s deputies to town hall.
The dispute was allegedly over a broken trash can lid, which began with a new bin being requested but not delivered in a timely fashion. “We were short-staffed and we were overwhelmed and simply hadn’t gotten around to it yet. That I take responsibility for, but I’m only one person,” explained Hale after the incident.
Hale said Highsmith showed up, visibly upset, at town hall following a phone call between the town clerk and Highsmith’s wife, a conversation, Hale said, that turned sour.
“He came in angry, and he and I got into a heated discussion,” she attested. “I asked him to leave, and he refused and, thankfully, (Garland) Commissioner Ralph Smith showed up and tried to break up the argument.”
Hale further explained, “I came out from behind the door, and that is when he turned and smashed the glass of the clerk’s office. Police were called.”
Sampson County Sheriff’s Capt. Marcus Smith confirmed that deputies were dispatched to Garland’s town hall, but when they arrived, he said, they found no disturbance.
Deputies spoke with Hale and Highsmith, and, after a request from town leaders, only cited Highsmith for damage to property and let him go.
Smith said the town clerk went to the Sampson County Magistrate’s Office later and obtained a warrant against Highsmith for communicating threats. “It appears this information may not have been given to deputies during their initial contact with the clerk,” Smith noted.
Highsmith was released on an unsecured bond.
At the time of publication, Highsmith could not be reached for comment.