A sheriff’s office in North Carolina confirmed that it placed a captain on administrative leave after he was caught on video criticizing a Black woman’s harassment complaint at a county fair earlier this month.
The woman, who goes by Veleria Levy on TikTok, posted a video of her interaction with Cabarrus County Capt. Chris Measimer at a fair in Concord, North Carolina, after submitting a complaint about a verbal altercation with four people.
Levy said she was at the fair canvassing for the Democratic Party when three men and a woman approached her and started talking about former President Donald Trump. The conversation reportedly escalated into a heated argument, and Levy reported it to the fair manager, who redirected her to a booth where the sheriff’s office was monitoring the event.
After both parties spoke with the sheriff’s office, deputies ordered both Levy and the four individuals she argued with to leave the fairgrounds for disrupting the event.
Levy posted the recording of her conversation with Measimer who denounced her allegation that there was a racial component behind why he did not take her complaint seriously.
“You’re giving attitude. I can see why they probably didn’t get along with you,” Measimer says.
“No, because I am standing up for myself. I’m Black, so I’m giving attitude,” Levy responds.
“I don’t wanna hear that Black crap,” Measimer says back.
The Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office in Concord, North Carolina told Atlanta Black Star on Monday that an internal affairs investigation was launched after Levy submitted the video to deputies to review.
“There were videos brought to our attention in reference to Captain Measimer’s response to a citizen at the county fair, and we took immediate action by placing him on Administrative leave,” the sheriff’s office stated. “After an Internal Affairs investigation, disciplinary action was taken.”
The office also stated that deputies spoke with Levy several times about the incident and internal investigation and stated she is “satisfied with the actions taken.”
“We hold all members of our department to the highest standards of respect and professionalism, and any behavior that undermines those values is not tolerated,” the statement read. “We hope to continue fostering a community built on trust and respect and are grateful for the opportunity to learn from mistakes.”
In a follow-up video, Levy shared that the Internal Affairs Department with the sheriff’s office called her to apologize and confirmed to her that Measimer was placed on leave. She said she also made suggestions to them about screening and recruiting processes as well as DEI trainings.
According to the Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office website, Measimer is the captain of the Harrisburg division. Harrisburg is one of five towns located in Cabarrus County. The other towns are Concord, Kannapolis, Mount Pleasant, and Midland.
Measimer’s duties include supervising the town’s law enforcement, organizing security for major town events, and acting as a liaison for all Harrisburg incidents. He joined the Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office in 2001 as a patrol officer and became the first-ever captain for the Harrisburg division in 2022. He’s been a member of law enforcement for nearly 30 years.
