(The Center Square) – Democratic Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden, according to Republicans he answered during a legislative oversight hearing Monday, accepted little to no accountability for tragedies on his watch.
Sworn in Dec. 4, 2018, in the county home to the nation’s 14th largest city, McFadden was among six invited to testify before the Committee on Oversight and Reform in the North Carolina House of Representatives. Lawmakers queried him on his role in public safety, inclusive of the county, Charlotte and the Charlotte Area Transit System; strategic plans; spending; and initiatives such as diversity, equity and inclusion.
Charlotte’s crime issues have drawn sharp criticism, from polls indicating people are afraid to be there to perception after multiple incidents and lack of security on CATS. The stabbing death of Iryna Zarutska on Aug. 22 followed by the City Council’s $3.4 million damage control attempt through a firm, and the prisoner release link of U.S. Senate candidate Roy Cooper – former two-term governor, four-term state attorney general – to the suspect seen on a viral video has more than blackened the eye of the city.
“Come and I will show you a progressive Sheriff’s Office,” McFadden said. “Come and I can guarantee you this: You will see a difference, and you can compare me to any other sheriff’s office in North Carolina. No sheriff’s office has my resume.”
There are pluses he wishes to be known with that statement, and some minuses that are unflattering. Context is that the justice system in and around the Queen City, plus the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, have both good and bad numbers to offer – even if the panel wasn’t buying explanations.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police, overseen by Chief Estella Patterson, has the primary reports of crime. In 2025, overall crime was down statistically 9% and violent crime dropped 21%. Homicides (13%) and robberies (24%) were also down. The county’s violent crime was down 3%.
Deaths at McFadden’s jail in August and December of last year raised to 20 the number of inmates to die there since December 2018 when McFadden took office. For context, it’s double the number of predecessors Irwin Carmichael and Chipp Bailey. People die, he said.
In addition to the death of Zarutska that led to lawmakers ending cashless bail and the unwritten moratorium on the death penalty, the more than four hours of testimony covered the role of the Sheriff’s Office when it comes to cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; McFadden’s inability to name the three branches of government, igniting a social media frenzy bent with humor amid disgust; and plenty of blame game.
“We often get to see real leaders step in and say the buck stops here,” said Rep. Allen Chesser, R-Nash. “I have never heard anyone with the rank that is on your shoulder, sir, say that nothing is their fault, that no blame belongs on them.
“Today I’ve heard you blame staff. I’ve heard you blame lobbyists. I’ve heard you blame the Legislature. I have not heard you take responsibility for a single question that we have asked you today.”
Rep. Brenden Jones, R-Columbus, a cochairman, asked in advance for emails related to diversity policy and said he has reason to believe all were not sent.
House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell, isn’t on the panel. Though on social media he wrote, “I’ll be blunt. I sponsored House Bill 318 because Sheriff McFadden repeatedly refused to cooperate with ICE and turned Charlotte into a sanctuary for illegal aliens.”
That “sanctuary” was rocked in November when ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Patrol visited with enhanced enforcement of immigration law in Operation Charlotte’s Web. McFadden, Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles and her City Council openly showed their detest and rejection of the idea.
The Criminal Illegal Alien Enforcement Act, as HB318 is known, became law through a July 29 override of first-term Democratic Gov. Josh Stein – the former two-term attorney general working cohesively with Cooper during his gubernatorial years.
McFadden said he’s different than most other sheriffs, including being the first Black to hold the office in the county.
“That itself comes with a burden,” he said. “We were called every name in the book. Let’s be honest with that. I am the elephant in the room, but I’m the proud elephant in the room.”
McFadden was one of six invited to testify. Lyles and Patterson were two others. Charlotte City Manager Marcus Jones; Brent Cagle, the interim CEO of the Charlotte Area Transit System; and Spencer Merriweather, the district attorney for the District 26, were also on the agenda.
Merriweather said there are few lawyers willing to take the state pay to defend indigent people. And those that will also work neighboring counties.
Jones thinks McFadden should resign. And he made a point on why the hearing took place.
“I want that city to be the shining gem of North Carolina that I know it can be,” Jones said. “It’s a beautiful city, leading edge on a lot of things. We don’t want you making national news for the wrong reasons.”
