UNC Grad Student Maya Little Found Guilty of Defacing Silent Sam

**UPDATE** UNC graduate student Maya Little has been found guilty of vandalizing the Silent Sam statue earlier this year. But District Court Judge Samantha Cabe continued judgment and waived costs associated with the ruling, meaning Little will not face any further punishment.

Little’s trial comes a few days after UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Carol Folt apologized for the university’s role in the “profound injustices” of slavery. While UNC has been working to contextualize the history of its campus, Silent Sam has been a focus of unrest. The Confederate monument was torn down in August by protesters and the UNC Board of Trustees has a November deadline to develop a plan for the future of the statue.

District Judge Samantha Cane finds Maya Little guilty of the charge but continued judgment and waives costs and fines. pic.twitter.com/ASGsqyeZzb

— WCHL & Chapelboro (@WCHLChapelboro) October 15, 2018

The trial of the graduate student charged with defacing the Confederate monument known as Silent Sam on the UNC – Chapel Hill campus in April got underway Monday morning.

Maya Little appeared before District Court Judge Samantha Cabe Monday facing a charge of defacing a public statue after she poured what she said was a mixture of her own blood and red paint on Silent Sam in late April. The statue has been a flashpoint of protest for decades. Protesters pulled the statue from its base on August 20.

More than two dozen individuals have been arrested and charged in connection with the statue’s toppling and subsequent rallies on campus.

Monday’s trial began with Cabe quashing subpoenas from Little’s defense attorney Scott Holmes compelling UNC – Chapel Hill Chancellor Carol Folt and police chief Jeff McCracken to testify as part of the trial. A representative from the state attorney general’s office contested that forcing the two to testify would be an “undue burden” for the high-ranking individuals. While Cabe said the nature of their position would not disqualify them from testifying, she ruled against the subpoena because it did not provide a reasonable timeline for the testimony. While Holmes said he had known the trial date for weeks or possibly months, the subpoenas were served last week.

The state called three witnesses on Monday morning – two UNC Police officers and a maintenance worker who removed the mixture from the statue.

The first of the two officers to testify is a former IT director who has been with UNC Police for seven years. He now maintains the video system for UNC Police body camera footage.

The second officer was the arresting officer in the case. Prosecutors played roughly 10 minutes of body camera footage from the time of the arrest showing the mixture being poured onto the statue and Little being taken into custody.

Holmes has not seemed to dispute that it was Little in any of the morning’s testimony. He has instead focused on the history of the monument, the many protests that have been held around the statue and the public safety threat those rallies bring.

UNC Police have maintained a constant police presence around the monument recently, especially after a large rally last fall after a counterprotestor was killed at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Holmes indicated in opening remarks that his argument would point to the action to deface Silent Sam as being a law of necessity, where a defendant argues their actions were necessary to prevent greater harm or evil.

Holmes said the defense intended to call between five and eight witnesses when the trial resumes Monday afternoon.

Little spoke to supporters gathered outside the courthouse Monday morning.

“We’re here because we’re a part of a community,” Little told the crowd, “a community that’s come together because institutions in this county, in Chapel Hill, at UNC have failed us. They have failed to stop white supremacy; they have failed to remove it from campus.

“And now they are punishing the people who have fought against it this year.”

Little’s supporters have continued to call for charges to be dropped against Little and those charged at Silent Sam protests this fall.