'The lawfare should stop': Walker County sheriff releases statement after arrest, indictment by grand jury
Walker County Sheriff Nick Smith was arrested and indicted by a grand jury for employing non-certified people as School Resource Officers and deputy sheriff.
He is charged with at six counts for assigning unqualified individuals to positions where they wore uniforms, carried weapons, carried badges and used fully-equipped patrol vehicles.
Court documents indicate that the events leading to the charges occurred while Smith was aware that they were ineligible for certification by the Alabama Peace Officers' Standards and Training Commission (APOSTC).
Each of the charges is a misdemeanor, which carries up to a $1,000 fine without jail time.
The full indictment can be read .
Hours after the indictment was released, Smith sent a statement to 米兰体育 13.
He stated that "one of the men I am charged with working as a School Resource Officer received special recognition from the Walker County Board of Education for his efforts in stopping what had the potential to be a very bad situation."
Later in the statement, Smith continued, stating:
"The charges against me are administrative in nature and do not carry any jail time. However, I take these charges very seriously. The lawfare should stop. Criminal charges should not be used to try to influence national elections and criminal charges should not be used to try to influence the local sheriff's race. I intend to vigorously defend these charges.
"I did not play a role in either of the district attorney's campaigns. He should remove himself from mine."
The full statement can be read .
The District Attorney Bill Adair plans to hold a news conference at 11 a.m. on Tuesday.
This is a developing story and will be updated as information becomes available. Stay updated on the latest stories with the 米兰体育 13 app. You can download it here.