NAACP Chairman’s New Hire Questioned

Hours after Julian Bond was elected national board chairman of the NAACP, he reappointed to the executive committee a lawyer jailed for stealing from a client’s estate--a hire that has incensed some board members. Bond named James E. Ghee, 52, of Farmville, Va., to the leadership role in the venerable civil rights organization just after telling the media one of his top priorities was to “restore integrity and civility” to the Baltimore-based group. Ghee was perceived as Bond’s informal “campaign manager,” several board members said. Bond defended his choice, noting that a vote to oust Ghee from the board in May fell short of the two-thirds majority necessary to remove him.