(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Augusta Press.)
Being the mayor of Augusta was a tough undertaking for Mayor Hardie Davis, Jr. It nearly cost him everything.
Davis is leaving office with his personal life in shambles amidst a bitter divorce, state ethics investigation and multiple lawsuits pending.
After campaigning on “One Augusta,” he leaves the city divided. Currently, the city is dealing with the threat of secession from the residents of Summerville, soaring crime, rising taxes, crumbling infrastructure and a strong public distrust of local government’s ability to manage taxpayer funds.
Because I’m writing in place of Sylvia Cooper who is out sick this week, I spent some time reflecting on what I believe it cost Davis to be mayor. Going through all the information, I must admit I actually feel a little sorry for him even though his troubles are his own creation. Davis would have been better off staying in the state legislature or working as a lobbyist because being mayor was just too big of a job for him.
Being mayor cost King Hardie his integrity, his reputation, his wife, his personal finances, his home and his political future.
I would include a moral compass in the list of things Davis lost after taking the oath of office, but based on his entire tenure as mayor maybe he never had one.
His Finances: As mayor, Davis was to be a trusted steward of taxpayer funds. Instead, he used them to ingratiate himself at every corner. Despite the city paying for Davis’ lunches, video equipment, haircuts and vehicle, he leaves office in a dire financial situation personally.
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Davis’ divorce lawyer made the mistake of including an online link to the mayor’s personal financial info in an email that was later made part of the public record as part of the divorce proceedings. Because the link was not deactivated, anybody could go and view everything in the dropbox folder as the records were no longer private records but in the public domain.
Later, a social media post linked to the folder that contained Davis’ personal financial records. The link was quickly deactivated, but the records were out in the public and shared by others.
Tax returns, credit card statements and investment account info were all made public. A Review of those financial records show that Davis’ personal spending habits reflect the same ethos as his credit card spending while mayor.
What is clear from the records is that Davis will have to get a job when he leaves office. After his $20,000 in credit card debt, he has a net worth of approximately $6,000 to $7,000 before any equity he may have in any real estate holdings. After the divorce is complete, that number is likely to be much lower.
His wife: It did not come as a surprise to most that a divorce proceeding was filed between the Davis’s. Mayor Davis’s former consultant who has been alleged as his mistress has been a source of investigation by The Augusta Press for nearly two years. That investigation led to the public learning that the city had paid Carla Smith thousands of dollars of city funds while Davis was mayor.
To add injury to insult, Davis booted his wife from the church that they were co-pastoring and had her barred from entering the building. On Dec. 11, someone even changed the church’s profile picture on its Facebook page to an image of Carla Smith. Davis’s son commented on the post “baby y she look like dat.” The post was quickly removed and picture taken down.
Needless to say, any ethics Davis had as a minister has experienced a Chernobyl size meltdown.
His home: Davis purchased a home in 2015 located at 214 Barfield Court for $324,999. Zillow.com estimates the home to be worth $436,600. Davis refinanced the house in late 2021 for just under $300,000, indicating he has roughly $136k in equity in the home.
In a very public encounter, Mayor Davis used the Richmond County Marshall’s Office as an escort at the home while he removed personal belongings and his soon to be ex-wife watched. Whether the large law enforcement presence at the Davis residence was to intimidate his wife, protect the mayor or just keep the peace is unclear. What was clear is the large number of marshals present were not needed for him to remove his personal belongings.
His reputation: Just because Davis leaves office does not mean his legal troubles will end. Currently, the mayor has an outstanding state ethics investigation. In addition, Davis has two lawsuits pending related to his failure to produce records under the Open Records Act. So much for his campaign on openness and transparency.
The first of those lawsuits was ruled on against Davis with a civil penalty of $1,000 for refusing to provide the documents. Davis has since appealed the ruling, thus racking up an even larger legal bill he clearly doesn’t have the money to pay.
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Not to worry though the taxpayers of Richmond County will continue to bail Davis out of his legal bills. To date the taxpayers of Augusta-Richmond County have had to foot the bill for the lawsuit despite the suit involving Davis political campaign.
The second lawsuit is related to the Mayor’s Masters Reception, Inc., and Davis’ refusal to produce documents. The non-profit puts on an annual event during Master’s Week and has in previous years used substantial city resources in addition to the $15,000 in direct city funds form the city coffers. This case in ongoing.
If you are reading this column, more than likely you helped pay the legal bill for this lawsuit also since the city just wrote a check for over $22,000 to Davis’ lawyer.
His Political Future: I would like to say that in the future, Davis will just be a footnote in Augusta’s history. However, he has made it clear that he plans to stay a fly in Augusta proverbial ointment. Davis has told many political leaders in the area that he plans to take a year or two to restore his reputation and get his life in order so that he can run for governor.
Don’t fear The Augusta Press will keep its eyes open even after Davis leaves office. The file will stay open on senior reporter Scott Hudson’s desk.
Lastly, despite the blatant moral failures and disregard for fiscal responsibility, Davis felt the need to send a letter to all Augustans outlining his achievements. That letter cost over $8,000, and enough copies were made that every citizen of the county could have one according to the marketing company that produced it. A copy of that letter is below.
Joe Edge is the publisher of The Augusta Press. Reach him at joe.edge@theaugustapress.com
