By Associated Press
Talladega County AL – Gene and Faye Finley decided not to prosecute five teenagers who put a racial slur on a sign at their business "because of the love for the children."
Sitting side by side in a booth at their business, Faye's Bar-B-Que & Home Cooking on the Old Birmingham Highway, the couple explained their decision not to have the teens arrested.
The teens and their families apologized to the couple for the incident, which occurred between midnight and 2 a.m. on Monday, July 30.
Faye Finley knows all five teens, four boys and one girl, who were involved in the incident.
"I've seen all of them through the years. I've been feeding them at my table," she said.
Talladega County Sheriff Department Chief Deputy Jimmy Kilgore said Tuesday investigators had gotten some information on one of the suspects and followed up on it. The investigators discovered five juveniles had changed the sign to read, "Fresh Hot N..s".
Kilgore said the Finleys decided to sign a "lack of prosecution form" with the Sheriff's Department in regards to the juveniles.
The couple wanted the public to know what led to their decision not to pursue charges.
Faye Finley said she and her husband were on their way home last Wednesday night when they received a phone call from a friend of one of the juveniles involved.
"He told us the teen wanted to apologize to us and could we meet him at the restaurant later that night. I told him we would have to call the Sheriff's Department to let them know so they could be there," she said.
The couple then got a call from parents of two of the other juveniles also asking to meet with them that evening.
"We were to meet them at 10:30 p.m. after we got back from church in Anniston. When we pulled into the restaurant parking lot, there were cars everywhere. Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and family friends of these teens, along with the teens, were there to meet us," she said.
Four of the five teens were there. Everyone apologized for what happened with the sign, the Finleys said.
"They said they didn't mean to do it and it was just a prank," Gene Finley said.
The next day, the fifth teen and his father came to the restaurant to apologize to the couple.
"My husband and I decided not to press charges. We accepted their apologies. I hope they are sincere. We did not want to prosecute because of their futures and what it might do to them. Also, I want everyone to know we did this 'because of the love for those children,'" Faye Finley said.
Gene Finley said when he questioned the teens, who are between the ages of 15 and 17, about why they did something like that, they couldn't give him an answer.
"They came and ate with us for years," he said.
The couple said they were overwhelmed when they got to their restaurant's parking lot on the evening of Aug. 1 and saw it filled up with the teens, their parents, other family members and friends. A sheriff's deputy was also there, Faye Finley said.
"We only expected to see two, but there were four here. All apologized and were scared. Our hearts went out to them," she said.
The teens, who are apparently all friends, were out joy riding early Monday morning when they decided to pull the prank.
The couple said they wanted to make sure the Sheriff's Department had a deputy at their restaurant for the meeting the night of Aug. 2 since they were not sure of what to expect.
Faye Finley said after the public read about the incident in the newspaper, the community came out and showed their support.
"It has been tremendous. Probate Judge Billy Atkinson was here the morning the story came out in the paper. County Commissioner John Carter also came by. We have had calls and are still getting calls from people about this. Our business has picked up because people are coming by to show their love and support," she said.
Gene Finley said he hates this happened and that the community, of course, wants to show progress. "We don't need this. We said 'why us' to those kids and they said they didn't know."
The couple have two children and two grandchildren.
Faye Finley kept insisting their decision not to press charges stemmed from 'love for the children.'
The couple will be in business for 11 years in September.
Faye Finley is from a family of 14 children. She learned to cook for her family. "I helped feed 10 brothers. I went to school, then home to the kitchen," she said.
She was an Ashley, who lived in Winterboro and went to school there. Her husband grew up in Sylacauga and graduated from Sylacauga High in 1971.
Gene Finley said the deputies told the juveniles they were facing some serious consequences for their actions.
"Our hope is those children learned a valuable lesson and their parents will continue to guide them. We want them to know the seriousness of this, too. They could have faced some serious problems. I don't want them to think they just got a pat on the back," she said.
She said she felt love when they apologized to her and her husband.
"I felt they were sincere and we decided not to go any farther with this. It would hurt their lives. I feel in my heart we did the right thing. I have no condemnation in my heart," Faye Finley said.
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Information from: The Daily Home - Talladega, http://www.dailyhome.com
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