Editor's note: Candidate Sam May contacted the Cherokee Scout after publication to clarify something. "I was a mechanic and I got recruited by CID to do undercover drugs and investigative work. And I only did that for a fraction of the time while I was in the military," he said. This article has been updated to reflect this information.
Murphy – Friday night’s candidate forum for Cherokee County sheriff turned out very differently than expected just a day before.
On Thursday morning, three candidates were expected at the forum. However, later Thursday, incumbent sheriff Dustin Smith announced he was resigning.
An incumbent is normally the favorite in an election, although Smith’s three years in office have been marred by serious issues. With Smith out of the picture and with no Democrat running for the office, either Chris Wood or Sam May will likely become the next elected sheriff of Cherokee County starting in December.
There could hardly be a bigger difference between the two.
Wood has a long career in law enforcement, retiring from the N.C. Highway Patrol after rising to lieutenant. He also served a short period with the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office before Smith was elected.
May is from south Florida and moved to Cherokee County in 2016 after serving 10 years in the U.S. Army as a mechanic.
"I was a mechanic and I got recruited by CID to do undercover drugs and investigative work," he later told the Scout. "And I only did that for a fraction of the time while I was in the military."
More recently, as a civilian, May been installing whole house generators.
Wood has a candidate page on Facebook. May doesn’t, but on his personal Facebook page he has a short video clip of himself, saying simply, “I’m Sam May, your Walking Tall sheriff.”
He said he will be a constitutional sheriff who carries his DD 214 (discharge papers) and the Ten Commandments in his wallet.
The question is, do Cherokee County voters want a seasoned professional – which former sheriff Dustin Smith arguably was – or do they want someone who will shake up the institution?
Wood said, on paper, he is the more qualified of the two candidates.
“I love this county, its people and kids,” he said. “It has been my life’s desire to serve this community.” He served nearly half his career in the Highway Patrol in Cherokee County.
May started off chastising the event because it did not start off with the pledge of allegiance.
Wood listed off policies and procedures of law enforcement in detail, with May following up often by agreeing with Wood. Things like using the Sheriff’s Auxiliary Unit to do things like fingerprinting and staffing the front desk, working with county commissioners and animal control.
In other areas, they disagreed. Wood said he’d rather have deputies in their patrol cars, which are equipped with everything they need to do the job, rather than staff substations.
May followed up with a breach. Rules said they were not permitted to ask each other questions, but May asked Wood about chain-of-custody forms.
It was an issue with the sheriff’s office when Wood was chief deputy. Audits revealed items were missing from the evidence room, noted only with sticky notes.
“What about those?” May asked Wood.
Wood paused, then said, “I will not respond to him.”
Later, on his Facebook page, Wood explained.
“There is a point during the forum where Sam May decides to not answer a question and instead direct an accusation and question of his own at me,” Wood posted. “This was in direct violation of the rules of the forum. While I appreciate that the moderator gave me 30 seconds to respond, it was entirely too short of a time to adequately orate the facts.
“I chose to not respond at all for two reasons. 1. It would have required me to speak about the past administration at the sheriff’s office, which I refuse to do considering what they are going through. 2. I did not want to embolden Mr. May to continue to act outside the rules of the forum while never offering any real ideas or answers of his own.”
For his part, May said corruption in the sheriff’s office needs to be taken care of.
Wood said he would reorganize the narcotics unit into a violent and major crimes unit to free up other investigators to deal with property crimes. He would “lead from the front.”
Wood spelled out ways to improve retention of deputies, such as regular pay increases. May replied that he “likes it all.”
“I’m not a politician,” May said. “I’m just a normal guy who wants to make a difference. I may not have the polish, but I have the heart and determination.”
Wood said, “Either you’re impressed by my resume or not, but you can’t deny my heart. I’m not finished. I have more to offer.”
The forum was sponsored by the Cherokee County Republican Party, Cherokee Scout and Local TV4 at the Cherokee County Courthouse. Christina Randall of TV4 was the moderator.
Details: Watch the forum via a link to Local TV4 on the Cherokee Scout’s Facebook page.