SHERIFF’S VEHICLES STAGED IN JETTON PARK

UPDATE March 4. There’s more information on the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s “law enforcement action” two Sundays ago on Jetton Road:

“The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office has territorial jurisdiction and the authority to take law enforcement action anywhere in Mecklenburg County including the townships that fall within Mecklenburg County,” according to a statement from a spokeswoman in the Sherriff’s Office.

McFADDEN

Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden was sworn in in December.

The unexpected speed enforcement operation took place on an otherwise quiet Sunday afternoon. Local Cornelius police were informed about an hour and a half before it got under way.

Cornelius Commissioner Kurt Naas expressed his concerns that another law enforcement agency came into Cornelius almost unannounced. Naas, who said about 15 deputies were deployed, is looking for an explanation.

“This was simply a speed enforcement operation and one of many speed enforcement operations that we conduct throughout Mecklenburg County on an ongoing basis,” a Sheriff’s spokeswoman said in a prepared statement.

Jetton speed limits are 25 mph on the Catawba to Liverpool segment and 35 mph on the Catawba into The Peninsula segment toward John Connor and beyond.

The highest speed ticketed was 50 mph, according to the Sheriff’s office. The median range was at least 10 miles an hour above the speed limit.

“The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office did make notification to the Cornelius Police Department as a courtesy just prior to the start of the speed enforcement operation on Jetton Road…and by no means was this intended to create an adversarial situation between the two law enforcement agencies,” the statement said.

NAAS

But no official coordination is needed or required since the Sheriff’s Office was not requesting any additional resources from the Cornelius Police Department.

It’s unclear how many Sheriff’s cars were staged in Jetton Park, but it was enough to make law-abiding citizens fret.

At the close of the Town meeting Feb. 18, Naas, said his wife was afraid there was a robbery or an “active shooter.”

“It’s not like Jetton between Stableford and Jetton Road Park is a hot-bed of criminal activity,” said Naas, who lives on Stableford.

He and Commissioner Denis Bilodeau have been in favor of raising the speed limit on Jetton with the addition of crosswalk improvements at three locations on the four-lane road. Bilodeau said 40 mph was a “comfortable” speed limit on Jetton.

McFadden himself will attend the town’s March 18 commissioners’ meeting along with the major who ran the operation.

UPDATE: Two Sheriff’s officers will attend the March 4 commission meeting, in advance of Sheriff McFadden.

BILODEAU

Town Manager Andrew Grant said it will be good to meet the new sheriff in town.