BACCUHUS CARVER

Bacchus Carver, Guardian ad Litem

Defendant Bacchus Carver, Guardian ad Litem being hereby named in both his individual and official capacities, is an individual and a resident of this jurisdictional district, is a Guardian ad Litem community volunteer, appointed by a District Court Judge in Wake County, North Carolina and was at all times material, pertinent and relevant hereto.  Current mailing address is; c/o The Wake County Guardian ad Litem Program, PO Box 1107, Raleigh, NC  27602.  The Defendant was in fact, acting under the authority or color of state law at the time these claims occurred in that while in his official capacity as a Guardian ad Litem for Wake County his execution of The Wake County Guardian ad Litem Program’s “customs” and/or “policies” were the moving force behind his unconstitutional acts, and that personally, his individual unconstitutional acts violated the clearly established constitutional rights of the Plaintiffs of which a reasonable official would have known, Davis v. Scherer (1984).  In addition, he did act under the authority or color of state law when he acted in concert with local officials, including but not limited to, WCHS social workers, their supervisors, county attorneys and others, causing harm to the Plaintiffs in effecting the deprivation of rights, Dennis v. Sparks (1980).

COUNT I; VIOLATION OF THE FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT – Both the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause

I have had little or no contact with Mr. Bacchus Carver, the Guardian ad Litem assigned in this case.  I spoke with him once in July when he called to introduce himself.  This was a fairly short conversation as I explained my position on the abuse allegations and further explained that I would not be pursuing reunification at this time as I was not yet represented by an attorney.

I then spoke with him several weeks later at my request to discuss concerns I had regarding my son Timothy’s behavior and lack of supervision.  During that conversation I expressed that I would be seeking reunification and that I was now represented by Mr. Steve Combs.

I had not spoken with him since then and decided to call him after the adjudication to discuss my intentions moving forward and to request a meeting.  It was my intention to make the effort to establish a relationship whereby he could keep me informed as to the welfare of my children while keeping up with my progress.  I left a voicemail message on 9/22/2010 asking for a return call to discuss my children.  I received a return voicemail message from Mr. Bacchus Carver 2 ½ weeks later on Friday 10/8/2010 at 5:09pm when he stated among other things, “to be real honest, I’ve been focusing on my personal stuff to the point of just shutting everything out for a few weeks.”  I returned his call on the same day at 5:18pm and we spoke for 18 minutes.  I expressed my interest in keeping in touch regarding updates on my children.  I also discussed my desire to be able to visit with my kids and informed him of my progress and desires with regard to reunification.  He mentioned that he was going to visit with the kids on the following day and asked me if we could touch base on Sunday to discuss the details of my reunification progress for his report.  We also agreed that it would be a good time for him to update me on the kids.  We then agreed to talk by phone at 1pm on Sunday 10/10/2010.  I also requested that he keep me informed of any needs the kids or Natasha may have so I can provide by meeting those needs.  When I did not receive a call by shortly after 1pm I called him at 1:25pm and left a message letting him know that I was available until 3pm before I headed off to church.  I then waited and called again at 4:16pm and left a message letting him know that I would be available after 9pm since I had a commitment at church until that time.  When I returned home I retrieved a voicemail that was left at 7:09pm where he states “long story short, I forgot to take my charger with me this weekend.”  What a JOKE! 

So then he decides to email Julie Riggins and relay the information he agreed to call and discuss with me.  The email is as follows…

Hi Ron–

The GAL called me and stated that you had asked him if he knew of anything that the children might need.  He visited with the kids and Natasha over the weekend and here’s some possible suggestions:

Julie

I don’t understand why he did not contact me directly as request and agreed to during our last conversation.  It doesn’t seem as though he is willing nor does he care to keep me informed or communicate in any way.  No real surprise given that the interest in my children centers around MONEY!  That’s right, CASH from the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT!  I’ll get into that a bit later…