An Oregon mayor has been left shockedafter finding a dead raccoon and a sign with ‘racially hateful’ language that mentioned the city’s first-ever black councilor outside his law office. Redmond Mayor Ed Fitch discovered the beast and the notice on Monday, local cops said. The sign mentioned Fitch and Redmond City Councilor Clifford Evelyn by name, police revealed. Fitch called the sign’s language ‘racially hateful.’ He declined to elaborate on the exact message on the sign but told The Bulletin, ‘I feel bad for Clifford.”It seems there are
some people in town that can’t accept the fact that Clifford is black and is on the City Council.’
Police aren’t revealing the sign’s exact language in order to maintain the integrity of the investigation, city spokesperson Heather Cassaro said.
Police said they are investigating the act as a potential second-degree bias crime.
Evelyn, a retired law enforcement officer who was elected to the council in 2021, described the act as a hate crime but said he has confidence in the police investigation, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported.
