New Hanover Co. asks for dismissal in Berger amotion appeal, court costs

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — New Hanover County wants Brian Berger’s appeal of his removal from office dismissed, and they want him to pay for it.

Today the county filed its answer to Berger’s complaint in North Carolina Business Court. In the filing, the county’s attorney asks that Berger’s complaint be dismissed with prejudice and “(t)hat the cost of the action be taxed against” Berger. The county hired private attorneys to fight the appeal. Berger was collecting unemployment before taking office in 2010 and has had no known paying jobs since.

Berger filed his appeal after New Hanover County Commissioners voted 3-2 in May to remove Berger from office through a process called amotion. Before that, the process had not been used successfully in the state in decades.