Garry McFadden is facing the biggest challenge in his seven-year tenure as Mecklenburg Sheriff.
Under a little-known state law, five Mecklenburg voters filed a petition Tuesday seeking his removal from office, alleging “attempted extortion and corruption and willful misconduct and maladministration.”
Mecklenburg County District Attorney Spencer Merriweather quickly asked the State Bureau of Investigation to investigate the allegations to determine whether a Superior Court judge should decide whether McFadden stays in office.
All Things Considered host Nick de la Canal spoke with WFAE’s Steve Harrison about the petition and what comes next.
Nick de la Canal: Steve, I think a lot of people are surprised about this petition process and that any five residents can, in theory, set in motion a process to remove a sheriff or law enforcement officer. How does this work?
Steve Harrison: North Carolina state law allows for at least five people to submit a petition alleging a number of improprieties, such as corruption and extortion. Then, either the district attorney or the county attorney decides whether to present the petition to a Superior Court judge. In other words, one of those attorneys decides whether the petition has merit.
If they do, then a judge can decide to suspend the sheriff. Then, after a hearing, the judge could remove them from office.
De la Canal: One of the petitioners calling for McFadden’s removal is a fellow Democrat, state House member Carla Cunningham. What is her complaint?
Harrison: Last year, Cunningham voted with Republicans for a bill that requires sheriffs to work more closely with federal immigration enforcement. Her vote helped overcome the governor’s veto, and it was really controversial. Cunningham alleges that McFadden told her during a phone call that, if she voted with Republicans, people would “come after her” and that “I don’t want to see you get hurt, you live in my county.”
She likened that to a mafia boss telling a business owner that “they have a nice little store; it would be a shame if anything happened to it.”
The petition said those alleged comments amount to extortion.
De la Canal: And McFadden’s former deputy chief, Kevin Canty, is one of the petitioners.
Harrison: That’s right. Canty worked for McFadden for about eight months in 2024 before resigning, and publicly saying that the sheriff bullied employees and was unfit.
There are many other allegations in the complaint, and a lot of them are about safety and general mismanagement: that the sheriff did not run the jail properly; that he ordered staff to work on his campaign website, which, if true, would violate the Hatch Act, which prohibits state and local government officials from working on campaigns.
The complaint also said McFadden ordered deputies to drive officials visiting Charlotte for a sheriff’s convention to bars and a strip club.
De la Canal: This petition was filed Monday, and then hours later, Mecklenburg District Attorney Spencer Merriweather announced he would ask the SBI to review the allegations. How will that work?
Harrison: We don’t know how long that will take. But Merriweather is a key player in this. It’s his job to decide whether to bring this case to a Superior Court Judge.
In a news release yesterday, he seemed conflicted about the process, writing that the most fundamentally sound way to remove public officials is to vote them out of office. But he said his office has an obligation to decide whether the petition should move forward.
In his letter to the SBI, Merriweather asked them to look into four specific criminal allegations made, so this isn’t just an allegation that the sheriff isn’t doing a good job.
De la Canal: So the DA has asked for an investigation. But McFadden is up for re-election in two months in the Democratic primary. Will this be resolved by then?
Harrison: That’s hard to say. The law does require that a hearing be held as soon as possible. But it’s difficult to see this being resolved by the first week of March, when McFadden will face three challengers. And since there is no Republican running, the primary decides who will be the next sheriff.
De la Canal: So this will almost certainly be a distraction for the sheriff heading into the primary. Switching gears, has this removal process been used before?
Harrison: Three years ago in Columbus County, the sheriff resigned after the district attorney filed a petition to remove him from office. The sheriff had made a racist comment in a recorded phone call about a Black employee.
De la Canal: And what about McFadden? Is he talking about this petition?
Harrison: No. A spokesperson for his office says he’s aware of it, but isn’t commenting for now.
He has agreed to testify in Raleigh on Jan. 22 before the state House Oversight Committee. Republican Brenden Jones said the sheriff will be asked about his “mismanagement and blatant disregard for state law.”
De la Canal: OK, sounds like an explosive hearing.
