Mayor McCrory's Letter to President Clinton Protesting Army Urban Combat Exercises in Charlotte Document Image Files: Page 1 | Page 2 The Honorable Bill Clinton President, United States of America The White House Washington, D.C. 20500 Dear President Clinton: I am deeply concerned over the United States Department of Defense's recent handling of a military training exercise in Charlotte, North Carolina. The exercise, conducted on the evening of March 4, 1997, was misrepresented to all parties involved. It caused fear and anger among our citizens, who were particularly upset over the lack of communication and what they perceived to be a lack of concern on the part of local government officials. When Department of Defense personnel first began planning the operation, they contacted me with little more than a courtesy briefing on what was represented as a routine training exercise like many we have done before. DOD staff also contacted a member of the City Manager's staff, an employee from the City Real Estate Division and a police officer who became their liaison with the Police Department. The proposed exercise was presented to myself and City staff as a low-key, in-and-out operation involving possibly one helicopter and minimal noise and disruption. We were told that no one would know they were here. Each person, including myself, signed and honored confidentiality agreements because of our desire to cooperate with the federal government and the belief this was to be a very small and routine training exercise. Based upon the misrepresentation of the proposed training exercise, the City's Real Estate Division representative recommended a City-owned facility located in an uptown area of the city. In addition, a privately owned site in uptown was also selected. No advance notice was given to the citizens living near these areas because those individuals who had knowledge were misled as to the scope of the operation. On the night of March 4, residents of the uptown neighborhoods were stunned by the sudden appearance of 12 low-flying helicopters without lights, in possible violation of FAA regulations. There were snipers on rooftops shooting live ammunition at fake targets. Explosive devices were set off, creating a tremendous amount of noise. Given those conditions and the large number of military personnel in the area, neighborhood residents were in fear. Many of them called 911 to get what scant information was available, and many of them called me at home. I could hardly hear some of them because of the noise. The next day, many citizens, outraged at the lack of advance notice and nature of the exercise, called to express their dismay at the way they perceived the City handled the incident. It is also clear that had anything gone wrong, our citizens could have indeed been in danger, a fact that was never mentioned in the few brief and incomplete planning discussions for the exercise. I am deeply disappointed in the way the Department of Defense handled this exercise. We insisted the DOD cancel the exercise scheduled for later that week and it is unlikely we would be willing to host any future activities of this type. It is crucial for the safety of our citizens that the DOD be open about the extent of the exercise and the level of disruption it will create. Had we known the scope of the operation, we would have never allowed it to take place. Since the operation took place, I have not even been sent a letter of explanation or apology from our military. I understand the exact same dynamics occurred in Pittsburgh during exercises last year. This is inexcusable and causes unneeded mistrust of our military. The City of Charlotte has always taken pride in its strong working partnership with the Federal Government. In this instance, however, we were not dealt with in good faith. I can only hope the Department of Defense learned from this experience and that they will not subject other cities to the fear and confusion they created in Charlotte. Rest assured, we learned a valuable lesson and will be on our guard should we receive any other requests to stage training exercises in this city. I look forward to your response. cc: Honorable Jesse Helms Honorable Lauch Faircloth Honorable Sue Myrick Honorable Mel Watt City Councilmembers Mr. Erskine Bowles, Chief of Staff Sincerely, [signature] Patrick McCrory Mayor of Charlotte Charlotte Mayor Protests Urban Warfare Drill More on the Operation Cauldron Chariot