Name: Bismarck city attorney alleges harassment due to COVID-19 mitigation measures
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Bismarck city attorney alleges harassment due to COVID-19 mitigation measures

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Sign up now to get the most recent coronavirus headlines and other important local and national news sent to your email inbox daily.Please subscribe to keep reading. You can cancel at any time.Loading&amp;hellp;{{title}}{{description}}{{banner}}(renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax){{tagline}}{{special_title}}{{html}}You have permission to edit this article.© 2022 Lee EnterprisesShare ThisBismarck city attorney alleges harassment due to COVID-19 mitigation measuresShare thisA second public official in Bismarck has alleged harassment because of her role in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.City Attorney Jannelle Combs told the Tribune on Monday that she has been the subject of social media threats and calls for her firing. The matter could come to a head at Tuesday's city commission meeting, at which Combs' detractors plan to gather. Mayor Steve Bakken will address the issue at the meeting, according to a city spokeswoman.The harassment intensified in October, Combs said. Bismarck-Burleigh Public Health Director Renae Moch reported being harassed&nbsp;in September, and Combs said she volunteered to handle some COVID-19 issues publicly to protect Moch.Combs said she has been physically threatened -- including a call for her to be spanked and one Facebook comment asking if people still do "blanket parties." A blanket party involves throwing a blanket over a person and restraining him or her while others hit the victim, sometimes with socks containing a bar of soap.Combs said she has referred the threats to the Bismarck Police Department.&nbsp;Harassment under North Dakota law is punishable as a misdemeanor if proven.People have sent emails to city commissioners asking for Combs to be fired, started the hashtag #FireCombs on Facebook and plan to pack the Bismarck City Commission meeting Tuesday to call for her to be fired, she said.Combs said there have been complaints that she specifically wanted the city's mask mandate in place.The request for a mask mandate and capacity guidelines came from the city Board of Health, which is made up of the board of city commissioners. The board voted 4-1 to approve Commissioner Nancy Guy's motion for city staff to draft a mandate and capacity guidelines. Combs said she worked with Guy, city administration and the local public health department to develop the draft. The commission approved the mask mandate and capacity guidelines in a 3-2 vote Oct. 27. The order was rescinded after Gov. Doug Burgum in mid-November approved measures including a statewide mask mandate and capacity restrictions on businesses.Combs said that as part of her job she has spoken to local businesses about state health orders and the city's former mask mandate and business capacity guidelines so that police officers don't show up.Several posts on Facebook call for business owners to attend the commission meeting Tuesday and make formal complaints against Combs for harassing them. One screen grab of a post from the private Facebook group North Dakota Freedom Defenders says, "anyone who is sick of the control and manipulation of Ms. Combs NEEDS to attend this meeting!" The post asks Bismarck residents to "pack the room, hallway, and overflow."North Dakota Freedom Defenders has more than 5,000 members and states that its focus is "to discuss and carry out ACTIONS we can take as citizens to defend our freedoms." The group was formed Aug. 29, according to Facebook. Two administrators for the group did not immediately respond to Facebook messages left by the Tribune seeking comment.Combs said she has received calls from business owners who are upset that other owners aren't following COVID-19 mitigation requirements. Business owners she talks to are "fairly decent," Combs said, though some are upset with health orders from the state. She said she answers questions that owners have and explains the laws to them."Someone's got to take a stand and make sure this doesn't happen to another city employee," she said. "Someone has to stand up to the bullies."Reach Sam Nelson at 701-250-8264 or .Sign up now to get the most recent coronavirus headlines and other important local and national news sent to your email inbox daily.{{title}}{{summary}}You don't have any notifications.Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.Topics

Sign up now to get the most recent coronavirus headlines and other important local and national news sent to your email inbox daily.Please subscribe to keep reading. You can cancel at any time.Loading&amp;hellp;{{title}}{{description}}{{banner}}(renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax){{tagline}}{{special_title}}{{html}}You have permission to edit this article.© 2022 Lee EnterprisesShare ThisBismarck city attorney alleges harassment due to COVID-19 mitigation measuresShare thisA second public official in Bismarck has alleged harassment because of her role in...

Bismarck city attorney alleges harassment due to COVID-19 mitigation measures

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