On September 1, 2026, I spoke during the Warren County Board of Supervisors’ 1:00 p.m. meeting. You can watch my full public comment here: Public Comment: Social Media Censorship, FOIA, and Accountability — Sept. 1, 2026

I began, as I had often done since July 2025, by thanking the Board for repairing the ceiling in the Government Center. The first time I mentioned it, I said that the cracks in the ceiling felt a little like the cracks in the Board itself. Over time, it became a familiar part of my public comments.

This time, however, I was there to address two connected concerns: public speech and public accountability.

Deleted comments are a policy problem

In the weeks leading up to the July 4 fireworks event at the 4-H Center, comments were deleted from a county Facebook post. One of the event’s largest sponsor logos belonged to a company known for building data centers, and residents began asking why the company was being promoted so prominently.

I submitted a FOIA request after hearing about it. Last month, Supervisor Carter said the removed comments were supposedly “derogatory” when he publicly asked legal counsel whether those actions were legitimate. The response showed roughly ten deleted comments, but what I saw did not match that characterization. Among them was a comment asking why a data-center company was the event’s biggest sponsor, and another questioning the deletion itself.

People can disagree with a comment’s tone or whether they like the question being asked. That is not a sufficient reason for a government page to erase it.

My earlier op-ed, “A Common-Sense Fix for County Social Media”, explains the underlying issue: the County needs a clear, published social-media policy and training for the people acting on its behalf. A policy that remains in draft form offers little protection for the public, volunteers, or the County itself.

At the meeting, I asked the Board to hold a work session, adopt and publish that policy, and provide training so this does not happen again.

Why I said “Stop it”

The Board also had a censure resolution involving Supervisor Hugh Henry on its agenda as new business. That followed the August 18 Board meeting, when Mr. Henry addressed a citizen from the dais and invited him to meet in the parking lot after the meeting.

Supervisor Richard Jamieson later described the incident in an op-ed, stating that deputies escorted both men from the building and that Mr. Henry then returned toward the citizen and shoved him to the ground. You can read Mr. Jamieson’s account here: “Supervisor Henry’s Conduct During and Following the August 18, 2026 Board Meeting“.

Videos of the confrontation, with deputies present, were posted publicly; watch the videos. The Warren County Sheriff’s Office later announced an assault-and-battery charge: Sheriff’s Office announcement.

None of that excuses deleting residents’ comments. Nor does it make accountability less important when it applies to other Board members.

Supervisor Jamieson was among the strongest voices calling for censure, yet video from earlier this year shows him removing political signs; watch the video. And Supervisor Tony Carter has a pending DUI charge from January; the Royal Examiner reported on the January 28 court hearing.

These are separate matters, with separate facts and processes. But together they explain why I said that a majority of the Board was facing legal consequences of one kind or another, and why I ended my comment with two words:

Stop it.

Not “stop public criticism.” Not “stop citizens from asking uncomfortable questions.” Stop the conduct that keeps putting this Board, and the public it serves, in this position.

Warren County deserves officials who can handle disagreement without threats, physical confrontations, selective censorship, or avoidable legal trouble. We need clear rules, consistent standards, and leaders willing to meet them.

Transcript

Lewis Moten: Good afternoon, supervisors. My name is Lewis Moten from the North River District. Thank you for fixing the ceiling since July of last year.

Supervisor Cheryl Cullers: It took a while.

Lewis Moten: Yeah.

So I’ve sent you guys messages before and I took – Mr. Carter had mentioned that there were derogatory statements taken down from the Facebook posts. And when I did my own FOIA requests, they weren’t derogatory. So I’m going to read this, and if you want to escort me out for this, that’s fine. But one person said:

“Deleting my comment asking why data center company is their biggest sponsor is wild work, lol. I think that’s unconstitutional or something.”

This was deeply offensive that our government felt that the need to censor this individual and everybody from hearing about it.

“Why are comments being deleted from this page?”

… and so on.

These are the derogatory comments that our government decided through its agent to quash everybody from hearing. I FOIA’d the social media policy that Jane Meadows mentioned a couple years ago when Archive Social came out. It is still in a draft state. So I would like to ask this board to consider a work session to actually develop and publish a social media policy and to have some kind of training involved that does not make this happen again.

The other topic…

I’m disappointed with what’s been going on. At this point, I’m aware or I’ve been told that there are three individuals. So that’s a majority of this board, that’s facing legal consequences for different issues. I have two words of advice. I’d like you to take it to heart. Think about it…

STOP IT!

Thank you.