November 06, 2008

DARIEN, GA – A day after losing his bid for re-election, McIntosh County Sheriff Charles “Chunk” Jones ordered that no more prisoners from the Darien Police Department be housed at the county jail and fired at least two of his deputies.

Challenger Stephen Jessup was named the winner of the sheriff’s race at 11 p.m. Tuesday after the county’s 1,300 absentee votes were counted. In his second bid for the office, Jessup won by 396 votes.

Darien Police Chief Donnie Howard said Jones called him Wednesday morning.

“At 9 a.m., my phone rang,” Howard said. “The sheriff asked me if I had any prisoners at the detention center and I said, ‘one.’ “

” ‘Come and get him and don’t bring any back ever, and tell your mayor she’s not welcome out here either,’ ” Howard said Jones told him.

The city pays the Sheriff’s Department to house inmates arrested on misdemeanor violations of city ordinances such as traffic stops and DUIs, Howard said. The Sheriff’s Department is required to house inmates arrested on state felony charges and magistrate’s warrants.

The city prisoner was being held on charges of DUI and driving with a suspended license. He had been released Tuesday night, but Howard said he wasn’t aware of that when Jones called.

Howard said he would “shop around” to other county jails to house city prisoners until Jan. 1, when Jessup takes office.

Howard did not speculate on Jones’ motives, and Jones did not respond to messages left at his office seeking comment.

“I don’t know what he’s up to,” Howard said. “I worked for him for 12? years and he’s never acted like this toward me.”

Howard said he and Darien Mayor Kelly Spratt, a Jessup supporter, had a run-in with Jones on Election Day. He said he and three Darien police officers were at polling places providing security at the request of Board of Elections Chairman Robert Mucha.

“The sheriff said I needed to get my people out of there,” Howard said. “I very respectfully refused to leave. He also told the mayor to tell me to leave.”

Deputy Robert Hoyt confirmed to the Times-Union that he was one of several Sheriff’s Department employees fired Wednesday, but refused to comment further.

“I’m not issuing any statements now because I’m seeking legal counsel,” he said.

County Manager Luther Smart said Don Mumford, another deputy sheriff, had also been fired.

Howard said that Jones had dismissed at least three deputies.

Also Wednesday, Jones rehired Capt. Ronald King and Kenneth Jackson, another former employee, Smart said. King resigned several weeks ago after being arrested by the Georgia State Patrol for driving under the influence.

He ran unsuccessfully against Tax Commissioner Wanda Nelson.

“I was informed by my personnel manager that King has been rehired,” Smart said.

A vocal critic of Jones, Jessup lost to him in 2004 and challenged the outcome of that race in court. A Superior Court judge ruled in his favor and ordered a new election, but the Georgia Supreme Court overturned that decision and validated Jones’ victory.

Jessup said that friction between the city of Darien and the Sheriff’s Department won’t carry over to when he takes office in January.

“The city’s part of the county,” he said.

Spratt said she’s ready for the dust stirred up by the election to settle.

“It’s a very tense time right now,” she said. “I would like to see this transition be smooth, from one sheriff to the new sheriff.”


Wardy Landrau
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