When the Columbus County sheriff resigned for the second time in early 2023 amid mounting allegations of misconduct, county commissioners had to act quickly to appoint his replacement.
The small, rural county had been the focus of media attention for months after news station WECT aired a recorded phone call in which the sheriff, Jody Greene, called deputies “snakes” and “Black bastards.” Long-simmering racial tensions surfaced; the North Carolina NAACP called for Greene’s resignation.
District Attorney Jon David also wanted Greene out. In court records, he accused Greene of intimidating county leaders, making false arrests, and failing to properly supervise the jail. A judge suspended Greene in October 2022, and he resigned for the first time weeks later. (Green won a second term the following month despite the allegations against him and resigned again.)
During Greene’s second absence, his longtime ally was tapped to run the sheriff’s office. Kevin Norris, who began there in 1997, had been promoted over the years to narcotics detective, unit supervisor, and captain. But when county commissioners met behind closed doors to appoint Greene’s successor, they instead voted 6-1 to instate Bill Rogers, who had recently retired from the N.C. Highway Patrol and served as interim sheriff following Greene’s suspension.
Commissioner Chris Smith told the Border Belt Independent the board wanted a fresh start.
“And we got it with Bill Rogers,” said Smith.
Now Rogers must run to remain sheriff. Norris and two other candidates are challenging him: former deputy Josh McPherson and Chadbourn Police Chief Ken Elliott. The four men will compete in the Republican primary on Tuesday. If no candidate wins at least 30% of the vote, there will be a runoff election in May. There are no Democrats running in that primary, so the winner of this race will almost assuredly become the next sheriff.
The first election since Greene’s dramatic departure could be seen as a new chapter for an embattled sheriff’s office. But some are concerned it could herald a return to a dark time in Columbus County history.
“The word on the street is that if Kevin Norris gets into office, then Jody Greene is coming back,” said Monisha Brooks Jones, chair of the Columbus County Democratic Party.
Greene is backing Norris. In a recent Facebook post, Greene described Norris as an experienced and dedicated law enforcement officer who can “stand firm against the political establishment that often claims to have our best interests at heart while failing to deliver real change.”
“Columbus County deserves a leader who prioritizes the needs of its citizens over political ambitions,” the post says.
Norris was among 51 people, including 18 sheriff’s office employees, named in a federal subpoena in December 2023. The FBI said it wanted to scrutinize the individuals’ financial dealings with the sheriff’s office. Experts previously told The Assembly and the BBI that the listed demands suggest that investigators sought information about suspicious bank transactions. No one has been indicted, and it’s unclear where the investigations stand.
Norris, Elliot, and Greene did not respond to requests for interviews for this story. Rogers declined to be interviewed.
Rumors have swirled for years about whether Greene might want to make a comeback. His tough-on-crime stance resonated with many people in Columbus County, which has long struggled with drugs and violence.
In late January, Greene’s Facebook page replied to a critical post about him: “And i will be back.” The comment has since been deleted.
A Cultural Shift
Following his retirement from the Highway Patrol, Rogers planned to focus on his farm in Evergreen, where he and his brother raise hogs, corn, and soybeans. But he said he welcomed the chance to serve as sheriff.
Like Norris, Rogers had been close with Greene for years. They first met as schoolmates and worked together at the Highway Patrol. Rogers supported his friend after the 2018 election, when some people questioned whether Greene actually lived in Columbus County. Election officials ultimately ruled that Greene was eligible to be sheriff.
But Rogers said in a 2023 interview that the men had stopped talking before Greene resigned.
Rogers said that he was working to ease tensions in the county amid inquiries by the FBI and the State Bureau of Investigation. He was encouraging deputies to build rapport within communities, he said, and wanted to show that all residents would be treated equally.
Some saw Rogers’ approach as a stark contrast to the previous administration. Rogers “understood changing the face of what the sheriff’s department looked like in the community,” said Jones, who volunteers with a local church that provides meals to people in need. Every time she sees Rogers, she said, he asks if the church’s pastor needs any help or resources from the sheriff’s office. (Jones said she was disappointed the Democratic Party did not find a candidate to run; many Columbus County voters who reliably supported Democrats for decades have shifted their support to Republicans.)
Greene has been less than happy with the characterization of Rogers. “Seems Bill Rogers made a statement that he came into a mess left by Me,” he said in a February 4 Facebook post. “Folks I have been silent but everything Rogers is claiming credit for I did.”
McPherson, who resigned from the sheriff’s office six months after Rogers took over and now farms full time, said the sheriff’s office did experience a cultural shift under Rogers’ leadership–just not a good one. Any sense of “family” among sheriff’s employees eroded when he came on board, McPherson said. Some deputies no longer ate meals together.
McPherson, 36, is the youngest of the candidates, and also previously led the county’s animal services and oversaw school resource officers. He accused Rogers of hiring and promoting family members and friends, leaving little chance for others to advance. “Nepotism—the good ol’ boy system,” he said.
In a candidate questionnaire, Norris told The News Reporter that he would “work to create a work environment where deputies and personnel feel valued, heard and supported.”
“If officers and staff feel respected and supported, they will stay and provide services to our county,” he said. “Everyone employed in CCSO will be recognized for their hard work and will be given an opportunity to advance in the office.”
Eyes on Chadbourn
While the sheriff’s race has been a big topic of conversation in Columbus County, it hasn’t drawn a lot of campaign spending.
Elliott’s campaign has significantly outspent the others, with nearly $18,800 in expenditures as of January 1, according to records filed with the Columbus County Board of Elections. Most of the money came from Elliott himself, who donated more than $12,700 to his own campaign.
Norris’ campaign spent about $4,100 through the start of the year, records show. McPherson’s campaign spent less than $2,200 during that time. Rogers’ campaign reported $1,500 in donations but did not list any expenditures.
Elliott, who has been the Chadbourn police chief since 2021, has been in the news since the town’s elected leaders held a closed-door meeting on February 21. Elliott alleged on Facebook that some council members called the meeting to fire him, although that didn’t happen.
“This was nothing more than a politically motivated attempt to intervene in the sheriff’s election,” Elliott said in a video. He said a town council member was upset by a comment he made to The News Reporter, but offered few details.
Elliott’s two decades in law enforcement have included time with the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office. He took over in Chadbourn after Chief William Anthony Spivey was accused of mishandling evidence, trafficking drugs, and embezzling money and tried to fake his own death in the Lumber River. Spivey was arrested 20 miles away in Loris, South Carolina, pleaded guilty to 14 felonies, and was sentenced to up to 22 years in prison.
Elliott told The News Reporter that if he is elected sheriff, he wants to create precincts throughout the county, which he believes will reduce response times and vehicle maintenance needs, increase patrols, and “build stronger relationships through community policing.”
The sheriff’s office already has a satellite location in Delco. McPherson said he would look to increase staffing at the site as sheriff.
Either option would require money, and Columbus County is short on cash. Commissioners in June approved using up to $1.5 million in reserves to cover budget shortfalls caused in part by unexpected medical bills for people housed at the county jail.
Avoiding Controversy
The Columbus County Republican Party isn’t endorsing any of the candidates in Tuesday’s sheriff primary.
Chairman Sammy Hinson said he and many others were disappointed when commissioners didn’t appoint Norris three years ago. “He had been around for a while, knows a lot of people, was familiar with the sheriff’s office,” Hinson said.
But he said Rogers has been an effective leader. “He seems to run a tight ship over there. I think all of his deputies respect him as the sheriff.”
Things haven’t been totally seamless under Rogers’ watch. In late January, a man charged with murder escaped the county jail by reportedly impersonating another inmate scheduled for release. He was arrested two days later at a Motel 6 in Robeson County.
Rogers has declined to speak with The Assembly and the BBI since the news outlets sued the county over public records related to Greene’s time as sheriff. A Columbus County Superior Court judge last year ordered the county and the sheriff’s office to release additional records; the county filed an appeal, which is pending.
County commissioners Smith and Buddy Byrd said Rogers has excelled in one area: avoiding drama. “I think Rogers has done a good job, and our sheriff’s department is running very well right now—not a whole lot of controversy going on right now,” said Byrd.
Smith said Greene, whom he supported as sheriff, fired “a lot” of deputies when he was first elected in 2018. Rogers also also made staffing changes as interim sheriff. In late 2022, he suspended, demoted, and then fired Aaron Herring, who had served as chief deputy under Greene.
Smith worries what might happen if Rogers is replaced.
“If another sheriff is elected, there’s going to be so much turnover and re-arranging, which gets expensive,” he said. “Everybody who works there is probably scared to death.”
Ben Rappaport and Carli Brosseau contributed to this report.
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