Ballantyne residents question Mecklenburg County sheriff

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Residents gathered at the Ballantyne hotel Friday morning and questioned Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden about an operation his department did on the other side of the county.

McFadden said, "I think people on certain sides of the cities believe we should not enforce the law."

McFadden was referring to an operation his deputies did last month. He had 12 deputies conduct a speed trap off Jetton Road in Cornelius on a Sunday. Twenty-one tickets were given out.

[RELATED: 'It's about privilege': Sheriff confronts Cornelius leaders over speeding tickets]

McFadden claimed privilege then led to a face-to-face confrontation this week between him and town commissioners. They grilled McFadden on why there was such a large response.

Charlotte City Council Member Ed Driggs hosted a breakfast with Ballantyne residents Friday. He invited McFadden to share his thoughts on this.

During the meeting, he read a letter from the Cornelius mayor pro tem. "I was flabbergasted when he mentioned privilege... race was totally immaterial to me and others."

Privilege also hit a nerve in Ballantyne. One resident said, "The thing about white privilege and everything else, it's absurd and it's offensive. It's offensive. For white people, that's offensive."

Driggs wanted more clarification on the initial operation. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney just happened to call, so he put him on speakerphone.

Driggs said, "You both [McFadden/Putney] have the roll, but in things like traffic enforcement, and so on, do you coordinate or are they separate initiatives?" Putney responded, "It depends."

Putney said he applauds any effort to enforce traffic laws. He said moving forward they need to work together. He added that it appears things have been blown out of proportion.

Driggs said, "I think the main thing is to be sure all the agencies are clear on who is doing what and the right messages go out to the community."

Cox Media Group