Columbus County Sheriff Jody Greene Resigns Again

Columbus Co's new acting
Sheriff Kevin Norris

Embattled Columbus County Sheriff Jody Greene, who resigned once before rather than hear charges against him in open court but was reelected sheriff anyway, resigned again a second time yesterday, rather than hear the charges against him in open court. The judge promptly dropped the issue the local district attorney had brought, instant removal from office, but has promised to rule later on the larger issue of permanent disqualification from ever holding office again.

Columbus County Chief Deputy Kevin Norris was named acting sheriff. Norris has many years of experience in the sheriff's office. Prior to being named chief deputy, he was chief of detectives. It will fall to county commissioners to choose a permanent replacement.

Following Jody Greene's resignation from the office, D.A. Jon David explained why he would still puruse permanent disqualification: “This office has been very consistent with where we stand on this issue. We simply do not feel as though Jody Greene should be someone who ever carries a badge again." 

WECT did extensive backgrounding of the misconduct allegations against Greene, and you can read those at your leisure (with a stiff drink). They suggest that indeed Jody Greene is not someone who should be carrying a badge.

Jody Agonistes

 

The now notorious Sheriff of Columbus County, NC, Jody Greene is about to have his tenure in office decided by another judge.

To recap: Jody Greene was elected sheriff in 2018 by a margin of less than 40 votes. Last October, racist diatribes against his own Black employees went public, secretly recorded by his chief deputy, who opted to run against Greene in November. The district attorney, Jon David, based on those phone conversations and other evidence that began to emerge, petitioned the courts to have Greene permanently removed from office as unfit. The DA had said that he could no longer rely on Greene's testimony in criminal trials because of the sheriff's blatant racism.

Before there could be a hearing on the DA's petition for permanent removal, Greene up and resigned, though his name remained on the November ballot. And sure enough, Columbus County voters reelected him with a little over 54% of the vote. Of course they did.

At the time, the DA vowed that if Jody Greene were actually sworn in for another term of office, he, Jon David, would refile his petition for removal. And that's exactly what he's done. Greene was sworn in yesterday. The DA submitted his new petition also yesterday. Both sheriff and DA are Republicans.

Among the allegations against Greene:

DA Jon David

Arresting his perceived political enemies — including a county commissioner who Greene had arrested, after he was recorded threatening to arrest him if he voted against a budget increase for the sheriff’s office.

Threatening county commissioners with retribution in other ways, including by removing air conditioning units from a local middle school and sending investigators to one commissioner’s business.

Sexual harassment, involving an affair with a deputy under his command.

Damaging government property, for a broken window that allegedly stemmed from a tryst with that deputy.

Failing to protect people in county custody, after one man was left with severe brain injuries from a beating that jail staff under Greene’s command failed to stop.

What I want to know is how you break a window having sex with an employee. I've run several scenarios through my Imaginator 4000, and only one makes any sense at all.

American History X

 

Columbus County, NC, is a long way from Watauga County, down almost to the coast with no major highways that you might have traveled on your way to getting a tan at the beach. It's almost exclusively rural. Whiteville is the county seat, a name that has some resonance for this story. According to the 2020 Census, the county's population is a little over 30% Black, with an additional 2,000 Waccamaw Siouan American Indians. 

As recently as the 2018 general elections, the county had a Black sheriff, Lewis Hatcher, who was defeated in that election (by 34 votes) by one Jody Greene, who was suspended from office in October pending an investigation of recordings of his going off on racist rants. The county's DA had filed the court petition to remove him. (Actually, Greene voluntarily stepped down to head off a public hearing on his misdeeds.) His unbecoming behavior toward Black subordinates went public in September (covered here on WataugaWatch, you bet!).

Once (and future?) Sheriff Jody Greene

Nevertheless -- and this is where rural North Carolina can be as irrationally unpredictable as a Franz Kafka short story -- Jody Greene's name remained on November's ballot, and he actually won the election with 54.26% of the vote, beating the sheriff's deputy, Jason Soles, who blew the whistle on him for his balls-to-the-walls racism.

The DA -- maybe with remarkable presentiment -- issued this warning on the same day Jody Greene stepped down: “These allegations speak through time and are disqualifying to anyone seeking to hold the high office of sheriff. Should Greene be successful in the November election, my office would have an ethical obligation to file, and will file, a new Petition to Remove Greene from that term of office based on the allegations alleged in the current Petition to Remove.” Whoa! 

In the updated petition for removal, the DA lists new allegations against Greene, claiming Greene had arrested residents without basis, threatened county commissioners, and had a sexual relationship with a female employee while on duty.

Trump America likes its autocrats, especially the armed bullies.

NC Sheriffs' Assoc. Condemns Jody Greene in Columbus Co.