Sheriff's Welcome Message
Mecklenburg County is the largest and most populous county in the state of North Carolina and home to the nation’s seventeenth largest metropolitan city of Charlotte. Mecklenburg County encompasses 546 square miles and has six townships.
The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office is the largest Sheriff’s Office in both North and South Carolina with close to 1100 employees. The Mecklenburg County Detention Center network is also the largest municipal detention system in the state of North Carolina.
The women and men of the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office are dedicated professionals committed to providing our citizens with the highest degree of service. I am honored to lead this organization into a new era where we are nationally recognized and serve as a model of how a Sheriff’s Office serves its community.
Thank you for the opportunity to serve.
Garry L. McFadden
45th Sheriff of Mecklenburg County
History of the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office
In 1669 the Province of the Carolina was divided into counties and according to the original charter, there “shall be a….Sheriff.” In 1729, seven of the eight Lord Proprietors sold their land interest to the Crown and the Carolina Province was officially divided into the Royal Colonies of North and South Carolina. In 1762, the Provincial Assembly granted a petition to form Mecklenburg County from the western part of Anson County and on February 1, 1763 Mecklenburg County was created.
Since the formation of the State of North Carolina and the creation of Mecklenburg County on February 1, 1763, colonial law required there to be a “High Sheriff” of the County. Many of the responsibilities and duties assigned to the Sheriff today can be traced back to Mecklenburg County’s first Sheriff, Alexander Lewis who acted as the executive and the enforcement arm of the courts.
For over 250 years, forty-five High Sheriffs have served the citizens of Mecklenburg County by carrying out their responsibilities of the serving civil processes, the execution of judgments, evicting of tenants who default on their payments, and the seizure of property. The Mecklenburg County Sheriff is also responsible for the operation of North Carolina’s largest municipal detention system, which provides safe, humane and professional detention services to those incarcerated and awaiting trial.
The Office of Sheriff is mandated in the North Carolina Constitution and the Sheriff serves as the Chief Law Enforcement Officer of the County elected by the citizens for a four-year term. The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office in its scope and territorial jurisdiction which encompasses all of Mecklenburg County has full law enforcement authority to enforce criminal laws, traffic laws, preserve the peace, and to prevent and detect crime. The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office does not take 911 calls for service but make no mistake about it; we are a law enforcement organization that actively enforces the law to keep the citizens of this great county safe.
980-314-5000
https://mecksheriffweb.mecklenburgcountync.gov/
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