NEWLAND — William J. Barthel’s conviction on a pair of charges was upheld in Avery County Superior Court on Thursday, Aug. 1. Barthel had been found guilty of one count each of Disruption of an Official Meeting and Resisting a Public Officer relating to his conduct during a meeting of the Avery County Commissioners on January 16 which led to his arrest.
During the January county commission meeting, Barthel stood in the back of the boardroom holding a vinyl sign which included vulgarities directed at Cindy Turbyfill, Avery County Assistant Manager and Clerk to the Board.
Barthel was approached by ACSO deputy Mike Watson and asked to remove the banner. Barthel was non-compliant, citing his First Amendment right to free speech. Avery Commission Chairman Tim Phillips requested Barthel by removed from the room by officers due to the disruption. Following a brief scuffle with officers, Barthel was removed to the adjoining hallway, questioning if he was being detained for trespassing at the meeting and continued to resist. Barthel also directed obscenities at officers restraining him during his removal, leading to the arrest.
On January 17, Barthel was released from jail following an overnight stay in the jail and posting a $1,000 bond. His first appearance in Avery County District Court occurred on Wednesday, Feb. 7, with the case continued until May 14.
As previously reported in The AJT, Barthel was found guilty by Judge Matt Rupp in Avery County District Court on May 14 of both charges, each of which is a misdemeanor, which Barthel opted to appeal.
According to court documents, the guilty verdict on August 1, includes a sentence of 60 days in jail, 30 days for each convicted charge minus one day credit for the day he served when initially arrested before posting bond. Barthel also received 36 months of supervised probation (18 months for conviction of each charge), as well as the requirement to perform 72 hours of community service during the first 90 days of his probation. Barthel was also ordered to pay $2,468.50 in total court costs within 60 days of the Superior Court judgment.
In addition to the aforementioned sentence particulars, Barthel is banned from attending any Avery County Board of Commissioners meetings while he is on probation. With the appeal session, the Judge increased the number of community service 24 hours from the initial District Court ruling of 48 hours that Barthel must perform, and the community service must be fulfilled in Mitchell County, the county of Barthel’s listed home residence.
In addition, if any of the conditions are broken by Barthel, or is charged with any other legal offenses during his probation period, he will be returned to court and a judge could change his jail sentence from suspended to activated. According to court documents listing his rulings, the judge also ordered Barthel not to assault, threaten, harass, or be on work or home properties, or to contact Turbyfill directly or indirectly, and not to initiate communication with her by any means whatsoever during his three-year probation term.
“This is not a First Amendment issue and never has been despite Mr. Barthel’s contention,” said Avery County Sheriff Mike Henley following the sustaining of the verdict. “There are appropriate ways to express your constitutional rights, and his ways in this case were inappropriate. One person’s constitutional rights end where another person’s begins. I commend my deputies who were involved with Mister Barthel’s case. They showed tremendous restraint and correctly applied the law in his removal from the commissioners’ boardroom and ensuing arrest.”
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