The Jonesboro City Council voted Monday to censure Mayor Donya L. Sartor, citing unresolved questions about spending on city celebrations and a formal grievance from a city employee. Council members read the grievance into the record; it alleged that Sartor ridiculed, criticized and threatened a staffer who sought reimbursement for a work-related expense.
The censure followed a dispute over this year's Juneteenth and Fourth of July celebrations. Atlanta News First reported that the council said spending exceeded the budgeted amount by nearly $22,000. The outlet also reported that Sartor has faced scrutiny over the funding and accounting for the city's summer celebrations for a second consecutive year.
Sartor told Atlanta News First that she partnered with the Downtown Development Authority on the Juneteenth celebration to avoid asking the council to raise the event's spending limit. As relayed by the outlet, Sartor said the city contributed $22,000 and the DDA contributed $34,000 raised through sponsorships, and that the council approved the city's contribution. The city also paid for fireworks this year, after the DDA had handled that expense in prior years, according to the report.
Watchdog Group Raises Questions About DDA Funds
S.A.F.E., which Atlanta News First described as a nonprofit watchdog group focused on government-spending accountability, has alleged that Sartor exceeded her authority by spending more than $50,000 in DDA funds on the city's Juneteenth celebration. The council had previously ordered a forensic audit amid concerns about Sartor's handling of 2025 Juneteenth funds, according to the station.
What the public records show about the audit questions
During the earlier 2025 audit dispute, FOX 5 Atlanta reported that officials approved a regular audit of fiscal years 2022 and 2023 spending to provide information to a forensic auditor examining specific concerns. The publicly documented follow-up therefore included both that audit process and the separate administrative investigation into city-DDA transactions; the records cited here do not resolve the council's underlying questions about event spending.
Atlanta News First reported that Sartor had not responded to its request for comment on the censure vote. The grievance read into the record accused her of threatening a worker who sought reimbursement for a work expense. The station's account did not specify whether the council imposed any discipline beyond the censure.
A Pattern of Clashes Since 2023
Sartor made history in March 2023 when she was elected the city's first Black mayor in a special election to complete the unexpired term of former Mayor Joy Day, according to WABE. Jonesboro, the county seat of Clayton County, is a city of roughly 4,235 residents, according to 2020 U.S. Census figures cited by FOX 5 Atlanta.
In December 2023, Clayton County District Attorney Tasha Mosley announced no criminal charges would be filed against Sartor following a Georgia Bureau of Investigation probe into allegations that she had pointed a gun at a police officer, as reported by the Albany Herald, which noted the GBI found insufficient evidence of wrongdoing. The following year, Hoodline reported that Sartor ousted longtime Police Chief Tommy Henderson and installed Lt. Chris Cato as interim chief.
Lawsuits, a Retracted Resignation and a Stalled Audit
Two former Jonesboro police officers, Daryll Triplett and Godreque Newsom, filed a lawsuit against Sartor and the city in March 2024, alleging they were wrongfully terminated in retaliation for reporting the gun-pointing allegation, according to Yahoo News. At a November 4 city council work session, Sartor accused council members of being racist and little cowards, prompting Mayor Pro Tem Tracey Messick to walk out over bullying concerns, FOX 5 Atlanta reported.
The financial disputes came to a head in March 2025, when Sartor announced her resignation after the council called for a forensic financial audit, only to retract that resignation less than 12 hours later, citing stress and pressure from colleagues, per FOX 5 Atlanta's account. The council moved forward with a forensic audit, according to 11Alive.
Going Concern also discussed Jonesboro's finances. 11Alive reported that DDA officials challenged Sartor over Juneteenth funds.
Throughout the saga, Sartor has framed the conflict as a power struggle and accused council members of racism. Monday's censure vote, and the still-unresolved questions about event spending and the employee grievance, suggest that divide remains as wide as ever.
