Time for new leadership

It is time for a hard truth.

And what we are about to say should not be evaluated based on statements like, “He’s a Republican and we need to support him” or “I have known him all my life, and he is a good man.”

Those statements might have made a difference had this come to light years ago — or if the man in charge had been part of the sting to root out the corruption, again, years ago.

But there comes a time — a tipping point — when there is just no longer a choice. The die is cast, and there is a decision that must be made.

We are here.

And not because there has been an adjudicated verdict of guilty or even that there has been a substantiated claim that Sheriff Larry Pierce was involved in the massive — and continually shocking — descriptions of the dysfunction and corruption going on in the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office that have been shared in federal courtrooms in Raleigh and Wilmington.

Before you evaluate what we are about to say, we invite you to read the testimony that came out of the hearing this week in the case of former Drug Unit chief Mike Cox.

A warning — don’t do it in front of your children.

Call it lack of confidence.

Call it gross mismanagement.

Call it whatever you like.

But the bottom line is this is about trust — and safeguarding the effectiveness and safety of the men and women who continue to serve honorably in law enforcement across Wayne County.

It is not just about salacious testimony or waiting for it all to play out. Not anymore.

It is about getting back on track to address the increasing problems of gun violence and drugs in this community.

And all of that means it is time for a new sheriff, and it is time for Pierce to resign.

Now.

That was the short version. Now, let’s talk details.

The revelations from this massive investigation — and we haven’t even gotten to the trial yet — suggest a culture of arrogance and a disdain for the rules and the standards that are required from a man or woman who wears the badge of a law enforcement officer.

Seized guns stacked in an abandoned shower?

Confiscated drugs not marked as evidence or secured?

Allegedly tipping off the subject of a federal probe?

Those “little things” — and only in a case like this would they be considered anything close to minor issues — are a start.

And there is the alleged culture problem, a blatant and wonton disregard for following the law and protecting the community they were sworn to defend — and the accusations involve two of the highest-ranking men in the Sheriff’s Office, including the man in charge of the drug unit that is charged with keeping narcotics and dangerous dealers off our streets.

Sadly, there can be only two possibilities:

The Man in Charge, in this case Pierce, knew that something was going on and looked the other way.
He had no idea what was going on in his department.

We are not sure which is worse.

But we know for sure that neither suggests that Pierce was running the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office with the due diligence that is a must in a world like the one we are facing now.

The cries have already started. Corruption at this level suggests that there might be more to look at when it comes to the law enforcement practices in a community.

“Defund law enforcement,” they will say.

“See? We told you. You can’t trust men and women with a badge.”

Those statements are already being uttered — right now — in public and on the campaign trail.

But the truth is, you can trust the majority of those serving this community.

How do we know?

The government said, in open court, that more than a few officers at the WCSO are being called as witnesses and are going to testify about what was going on at the Sheriff’s Office.

Many of them likely knew something needed to be done, but did not know whom to tell or tried and were drummed out or demoted.

Ask around. Anyone who knows anything about the WCSO knows that we have lost more than a few good men and women in recent years.

Makes you wonder why, right?

And that is another failure of leadership in general and Pierce in particular.

No one in a law enforcement should be out of the line of scrutiny. No one.

And if you are looking for some heroes in this otherwise sordid affair other than those who are about to take the stand, look no further than the Goldsboro Police Department.

Investigators there knew they had a problem — that Cox’s alleged relationships with two of the city’s most dangerous and prolific drug dealers was concerning, so they refused to work with him.

And when Cox retired, they started going after the very dealers — successfully, in conjunction with the new drug chief — that Cox is accused of protecting.

And those officers, by the way, are the ones who are asking the city government to get their salary levels where they need to be to be able to serve their community effectively.

One of the places hiring away city police officers with the lure of higher salaries is the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office.

The irony is palpable.

But there is an even more important reason for someone to grow a backbone and to start the process of looking for a new sheriff — to be the one who speaks up and says what this community needs to hear, that politics and “favors” mean nothing when there is this kind of lack of confidence, when the safety of the community and other law enforcement officers are involved.

We do not need the defund the police crowd to get their claws into Wayne County.

Think it can’t happen?

Listen to the rhetoric. If you read carefully, you have already heard “social justice” rumblings.

This community needs strong leaders in every corner of law enforcement, men or women who meant every word they said when they took the oath and earned a badge and a gun.

They have to be strong enough to hold back the garbage from activists who seek to destroy law and order, and determined enough to get rid of those in law enforcement who think they are untouchable and that the standards of investigation and fair play do not apply to them.

No one has ever claimed that every single person who wears a badge is without sin. Like in any profession, there are bad apples.

But the majority of them wear the uniform because they care about the safety of their fellow officers, the communities they serve, and their families.

And they deserve to feel that those who are in charge of law in order in this county have earned the trust and confidence not only of the men and women who serve with them, but of the community they all have sworn to protect.

And we have no confidence in Pierce’s ability to get the job done of rebuilding, re-energizing, and repairing what is wrong in the office he promised voters he would lead.

And any officeholder worth his or her salt, who truly “backs the blue,” should understand just how critical it is to make a change now to allow those who wear the badge to be able to do their jobs effectively.

We need a leader who is ready, willing, and able to create a department that is about law and order — conducted fairly, decisively, and honorably.

We need to send a message to every potential drug dealer, child trafficker, thief, and gang banger that this is not the county they want to come to.

And it is time to start the business of finding that leader.

We cannot wait. There is just too much at risk.

Let’s see who has guts to stand up and say it.