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GREENSBORO — Former special intelligence officer Scott Sanders will return to regular duty next month in one of the final acts in the racially charged drama that led to the departure of former police chief David Wray.

Sanders and his attorney, Seth Cohen, held a press conference Friday afternoon to announce he had been cleared in the last of eight separate investigations looking into his conduct during that drama.

“I’m feeling very relieved to get to this stage of things. It’s been a long four years,” Sanders said. “It’s taken its toll on the department. There has been a racial divide in this department, whether some want to admit it or not.”

Sanders and Cohen called for city leaders to look into the entire controversy in detail and in a way that could help heal those divisions.

Sanders was flanked by five white officers and retired officers who figured in various aspects of the investigation, several of whom underwent investigations similar to those that focused on Sanders.

“In every case, everyone was found not guilty. All allegations were ruled unfounded,” Cohen said.

Cohen said he could talk generally about Sanders’ vindication but not release records of any internal inquiries by the department because state law prevents that. But the law gives the City Council power to release such material and he urged council members to do just that to clear the air.

Wray resigned in early 2006 after then-city manager Mitchell Johnson responded to complaints from within the department by launching an inquiry into whether black officers were being singled out for greater scrutiny and discipline under Wray, who is white.

Sanders figured most prominently in the controversy as an investigator looking into allegations against one of the African American officers, Julius Fulmore. Sanders was indicted and found not guilty in a February trial for allegedly gaining illegal access to a computer being used by Fulmore.

Sanders returned to administrative duty after that rather than investigative work, while the department conducted its internal inquiry. That meant he handled such duties as distributing uniforms and cleaning weapons, Cohen said.

Chief Tim Bellamy notified him Thursday he had been cleared in a final, internal probe and would be returning to work in the patrol division, Sanders said. The transition should take place soon after Thanksgiving, Sanders said.

Uniformed patrol is a lower rung on the departmental ladder than the investigative post he held earlier. Sanders said he can tolerate that, but the role does not make full use of skills he has developed over the years.

A lawsuit in federal court against Wray, Sanders and other police or city officials is among the last issues stemming from the Wray upheaval. The suit is being pressed by 39 African American officers who say they were victims of racial discrimination.

Those who flanked Sanders at the press conference included former deputy police chief Randall Brady, who retired in 2005 as the inquiry into Wray’s policies and practices gained intensity. Also present Friday was Sgt. William “Tom” Fox, who was indicted with Sanders in 2007 on obstruction-of-justice charges dropped against both men after Sanders’ acquittal on the computer allegation.

Efforts to reach Bellamy for comment Friday were unsuccessful.

But Sanders’ exoneration and return to regular duty pleased council member Mary Rakestraw, who has been outspoken in urging his reinstatement after the February acquittal.

“I’m glad to see that things seem to be in some state of being resolved,” Rakestraw said. “I certainly hope so. It’s gone on nine months after the (Sanders) trial and that’s nine months too long.”

Rakestraw said she agrees with the call by Cohen and Sanders to release internal files of the investigations into his conduct. When the newly elected council convenes, she plans to urge the release of as many such investigative files as possible to prevent anything similar to the Wray controversy from occurring again, she said.

New City Manager Rashad Young said he could not comment on Sanders’ individual situation. But he hopes to resolve problems in the police department by setting a tone that accepts diversity and individual differences while focusing strongly on achieving all the department’s major goals, Young said. 

Contact Taft Wireback at 373-7100 or taft.wireback@news-record.com