Two circuit judges have appointed Andy McCants as acting sheriff for Webster County while criminal charges are pending against the elected sheriff.
Fifth District Circuit Judges Joseph H. Loper Jr. and George M. Mitchell Jr. signed an order appointing McCants as sheriff pro tempore on Jan. 2, effective immediately. Their order cited sections of the Mississippi Code giving circuit judges the power to appoint a suitable person to serve as acting sheriff in such instances as the arrest of the elected sheriff.
McCants was a Webster County Sheriff’s Department investigator who had been serving as chief deputy for two weeks before the appointment by the judges. They said he is qualified to serve as sheriff pro tempore by training and experience,
“Consequently, this court finds that John Andrew McCants Jr. should be appointed Webster County sheriff pro tempore, and that upon taking the oath of office and posting a ($100,000) bond … that (McCants) shall serve as acting sheriff of Webster County the same as if he had been duly elected to the office,” the judges wrote.
Their order further says McCants will serve as acting sheriff “with all the duties, powers and responsibilities of the office, and at the salary and benefits that the Webster County sheriff is statutorily entitled to receive, the same as if had been duly elected to the office.”
McCants’ appointment will continue either until the term of office of the elected sheriff, Tim Mitchell, expires Dec. 31, the latter is cleared of the pending criminal charges against him or until further order of the court. Sheriff Mitchell was arrested Dec. 19 on a dozen felony counts charging him with committing the crimes of embezzlement, trafficking in stolen firearms, attempting sex with an inmate, tampering with physical evidence, retaliation against a witness, use or possession of controlled substance in a jail, and furnishing an inmate with weapons, cell phone and narcotics.
The judges’ order says he remains jailed under a $400,000 bond in Lafayette County. Therefore, it adds, he will be unable to perform the duties of sheriff when the next term of Webster County Circuit Court commences Monday.
Mitchell cited declining health issues when he submitted a letter of resignation Nov. 30 that was to take effect Jan. 2. Following his arrest, Mitchell appointed McCants chief deputy, giving him the full powers of sheriff while he is unable to serve.
However, in a written statement dated Dec. 24, Mitchell withdrew his resignation and said he fully intended to serve out his term as sheriff. The Webster County Board of Supervisors voted Dec. 28 to enroll his statement on the minutes.
Double payment
The court noted it has no authority to suspend Mitchell’s salary, and that paying two different individuals the salary that a sheriff is entitled to receive may impose a financial burden for the county.
However, the judges said Webster County is not without recourse. Again citing the state code, they said the county could sue a bond company to recover any salary Mitchell was paid during the pendency of the criminal proceedings if he’s convicted. The county can bring suit against Mitchell’s bond for failing to perform his required duties or violating his official obligations.
Each sheriff in Mississippi is paid based on how many people live in the county, which is $75,000 in Webster. That salary is set for any county with fewer than 15,000 residents.
Board action
In addition to the sheriff’s statement withdrawing his resignation, the county board voted Dec. 28 to enroll two other written statements from Mitchell on the minutes. Both were dated as effective Dec. 19, when he was arrested.
One concerned his appointment of McCants as chief deputy. The other stated Mitchell was firing and terminating the employment of Deputy Sheriff Landon Griffin. Mitchell alleged in the statement that the deputy’s termination was due to “criminal activities and activities unbecoming an officer of the law.”
Griffin and attorney Francis Springer of Jackson addressed the board afterwards. Springer told supervisors he and his client disagree with the sheriff’s letter concerning Griffin, and that nothing mentioned in the letter is true and they consider it libelous. Springer also told this newspaper they were considering their legal options based on wrongful termination.
Supervisors, at their first meeting of the year Monday, voted to go into executive session to discuss potential litigation. McCants remained in the boardroom with them during the nearly hourlong session.
Back in open session, the board voted to spread a copy of the circuit judges’ order appointing McCants acting sheriff on the minutes. They then approved a motion instructing the board attorney “to investigate the situation concerning the double payment of the sheriff’s salary and to investigate the hiring of additional legal counsel if necessary concerning the situation.”
Before recessing until 8:30 a.m. next Monday, Jan. 14, board attorney Buchanan Meek Jr. advised supervisors “not to speak about this at all because there very well could be litigation about this.”
