Robbinsville – Graham County will be without an official sheriff for at least another week.
The hearing between Jerry Crisp – who the local Republican Party nominated to the post vacated by Joseph Jones on June 29 – and the Graham County Board of Commissioners – which did not appoint Crisp to the position during a special called meeting July 7 – was postponed until Thursday, July 23, after a brief discussion between legal counsel and Judge Mark Powell in Graham County Superior Court on Monday morning.
Powell agreed that attorney for the defense, Jay Cowart – representing the commissioners – needed more time to prep for the hearing. The suit was filed on July 7, with the case appearing on the docket just six days later.
However, once the contention was made that by standard guidelines, the defense has up to 10 days to prepare for a case, Powell opted to move the hearing.
Crisp – who is also involved in a 2018 lawsuit with the county board over alleged unpaid contributions from the Local Government Employees Retirement System – was picked as Jones’ successor by the Graham County Republican Party exactly one week after the vacancy. Per N.C. G.S. Chapter 162-5.1, the affiliated political party has 30 days to nominate a replacement before the local board of commissioners gets to appoint a sheriff.
Among the requests the plaintiffs are seeking in the suit is the “immediate” election of Crisp as Graham County sheriff. Chief Deputy Chuck Stewart will continue to serve as sheriff in the interim.