Matthew Barnes wears his arrest on his chest as a protest against Helena Mayor Brian Puckett whom he calls a dictator.Joseph D. Bryant
A profanity-laced text from a Shelby County businessman to his mayor led to the arrest of the sender and a strong sign that a longtime friendship had ended.
Still, Matthew Barnes wears his arrest on his chest as a protest against Mayor Brian Puckett, whom he calls a dictator.
Barnes’ arrest and his public reaction to it has generated attention and chatter from Helena residents on social media and sparked conversations about the direction of city hall five months before elections.
The roots of Barnes’ arrest stem from how the mayor manages police department leadership and his recent appointment of an officer as acting chief following the January retirement of Brad Flynn. Barnes was angry that a more senior officer was not selected.
“The mayor wants control of the police department,” Barnes alleged.
“I pretty much sent him a text telling him how I felt,” Barnes said.
Helena Mayor Brian PuckettContributed
That led to the mayor taking out a warrant against him for “harassing communications with intent to harass or alarm,” a misdemeanor. Barnes turned himself in to the Shelby County Sheriff’s office March 1.
He declined to show AL.com the actual text before his court date.
Puckett said he filed the police report because he felt physically threatened.
“The threatening messages to me put me in a position of fear,” Puckett told AL.com. “I made a report about the threats. The DA’s office is the one that makes charges. So, it seems they thought it was credible enough of threats on my safety.”
Puckett also declined to share the text, citing it as evidence in an investigation.
Puckett noted that the law enforcement agency handling the case is Shelby County, not Helena.
“After I made the initial report, I have been out of it,” Puckett said.
Barnes admitted that he used profanity, but said the text was the result of frustration over the mayor’s recent appointment of an interim police chief along with other actions during his tenure. Still, Barnes said the text was not threatening and he did not regret sending it.
“Maybe I could have been a little bit nicer, but that’s just the Marines coming out of me,” the Marine veteran quipped.
Barnes sports a t-shirt with a spoof poster featuring his photo and a demand to “Free Brian.” He also wears a baby blue hat with “Make Helena Great Again,” in familiar Donald Trump-styled lettering.
“He thinks it’s going to hurt me,” Barnes said of the arrest. “It’s not going to hurt me.”
Barnes said he has a long history of community service including volunteering for the police and fire departments.
“I know what I’ve done for everybody and what I will do for everybody,” Barnes said.
Puckett denied that he was acting out a political agenda by filing his report.
“There is nothing political about it,” he said. “Threatening and harassing communication to someone via text, the DA sensed enough to move forward.”
Meanwhile, the court ordered Barnes to have no contact with the mayor.
Barnes, who will appear in court April 21, said he intends to fight the charge. Rather than being the aggressor, Barnes said he is the one being bullied by the mayor’s accusation of harrassment.
“He can’t use his authority. He can’t get away with it,” Barnes said. “We’ll fight till the end.”
Helena, one of the Birmingham area’s fastest-growing suburbs, will have a nearly all-new slate of leaders later this year as its mayor and four of five councilmembers will not seek election.
Puckett in January announced he was leaving politics and would not seek reelection in August.
The one-term mayor has said that his tenure included challenges, successes and some mistakes.
Puckett’s decision leaves open the mayor’s seat along with a long roster of council positions that are being vacated by incumbents with four of the five declining to seek another term for various reasons.
Still, Barnes wants the mayor to resign.
“I’m out for vengeance,” Barnes said. “I’m out to poke the bear and get rid of him.”
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