Public Records Law Meets Campaign Trail In Johnston County Sheriff’s Race
Officials cite extensive workload; sheriff candidate defends request volume
SMITHFIELD — A surge of public records requests filed by a candidate in Johnston County’s Republican sheriff’s primary has placed heavy demands on county staff, prompting county officials to warn that the scale, complexity and timing of the requests have strained resources.
Johnston County officials say sheriff candidate Randy Ackley has submitted 84 public records requests since April 2025, a volume that sharply exceeds typical activity. Records reviewed by The Johnston County Report show that just over 40 public records requests were submitted by all other requesters combined since January 2022 — and those requests covered all county departments, not just the sheriff’s office alone.
Ackley, who is challenging incumbent Sheriff Steve Bizzell in the March 3 primary, said the requests are necessary to inform voters.
“Our campaign submitted public information requests so we could accurately inform voters about the operations and staffing of the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office,” Ackley said. “Voters deserve facts, not assumptions.”
County records show that only four of Ackley’s requests were submitted before he announced his candidacy on May 1, 2025. All four were filed in April. The remaining 80 requests were submitted after he entered the race, compressing the workload into a short period during an active election season.
North Carolina’s public records law, outlined in Chapter 132 of the General Statutes, allows anyone to request government records without stating a purpose and requires agencies to provide access “as promptly as possible.” The law sets no firm response deadlines and allows exemptions for confidential personnel information and active criminal investigations. Governments may assess special service charges when requests require extensive staff time, though Johnston County has not done so.
Johnston County Attorney Jennifer Slusser said Ackley’s requests are far more extensive and complex than those the county typically receives.
“Some of Randy Ackley’s 84 public records requests are very extensive,” Slusser said in a written statement. “We try to give them a reasonable degree of attention with the personnel and other resources we have available, while balancing the workload required to provide proper safety, security, and services to the citizens of Johnston County.”
Slusser said the county has attempted to process the requests sequentially to manage workload fairly.
“We have attempted to answer Mr. Ackley’s public records requests in the order in which they were received,” she said. “Although where we were able to provide a response to a few of them quicker by taking them out of order, we have done that, but ultimately decided that we needed to answer all of them in the order in which they were received.”
The requests reviewed by The Johnston County Report span operational, administrative, personnel and historical records, often involving broad timeframes, multiple subparts or data pulled from several systems. Among them are requests seeking:
- the number of copy machines used by the Sheriff’s Office, paper usage statistics, and all associated copier and maintenance contracts
- a definition of “office duty,” including which positions qualify as office duty
- a list of all software programs used by the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office for writing, documentation and recordkeeping, including but not limited to Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat and Google Docs
- training records for Sheriff’s Office dispatchers
- training records for detention officers
- information regarding surveillance cameras located at the Johnston County Public Safety Center, including their intended use, but excluding specific camera locations
- all emails sent or received by administrative personnel during the last 12 months
- all group chat messages, including text messages, used by the Major Crimes Division, Property Crimes Division, or any other division-specific group chat
- recovered property data from 1998 through 2025
- Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) shift maps and movement logs for Sheriff’s Office patrol units on specific dates
- records of drones purchased by the Sheriff’s Office
- a copy of the current tattoo policy for Sheriff’s Office employees
- overtime pay and lunch break policy records
Slusser said the breadth of the requests has significantly increased the time required for review and legal analysis.
“Mr. Ackley’s requests are much more complex than the requests we typically receive,” she said. “They are extensive, with multiple subparts in a single request, and require documents to be pulled from various sources.”
“Because his requests have been so broad, it has been necessary for my office and the Sheriff’s attorney, Ronnie Mitchell, to take the time to review these records to make sure that we do not violate the law by disclosing certain records and confidential information,” she said.
According to Slusser, the workload has extended far beyond the Sheriff’s Office alone.
“Mr. Ackley’s requests have required substantial time to review, analyze and determine the extent of public records and what dissemination would be permissible,” she said. “Locating the records and determining their availability has involved not only the Sheriff’s Office but multiple county agencies and departments, including Emergency Services, 911 Communication, Finance, GIS, Information Technology (IT) and other services.”
“We have had at least 20 people involved in assisting with the responses, and the number of hours has been exceptional,” she said.
Ackley said county responses have been slow and incomplete.
“Unfortunately, the response process has been slow and, in many cases, incomplete,” he said. “Fewer than twenty responses have been provided despite numerous requests made months ago.”
Slusser emphasized that no fees have been assessed, despite the scale of the effort.
“We are committed to openness and transparency and do not typically charge special service charges to citizens requesting records, even when allowable by law,” Slusser said. “Mr. Ackley has not been charged for any special service charges or duplication fees, despite the extensive and complex nature of the requests.”
“We are continuing to work through the requests and will continue to respond as promptly as possible under the circumstances,” she said.
The Johnston County Report regularly submits public records requests as part of its reporting and relies on public records law to cover county government.
Similar surges in public records activity have been documented elsewhere. In Wake County, election officials reported that requests to local elections administrators grew from just over 50 in 2020 to 171 in 2022, illustrating how election-related scrutiny can sharply increase workload and take staff time away from core duties.
Another local government has responded to high individual request volume by adopting formal limits on staff time spent responding to repeated requests. In Bexar County, Texas, officials designated policies targeting so-called “zealous requestors” after a single individual filed hundreds of records requests within a few months, prompting the county to cap the amount of time employees are required to devote to such requests before charging fees. That approach was intended to protect limited county resources while still complying with public information laws.
Similar concerns have surfaced in other states where local officials testified that “abusive,” “malicious” and “vexatious” public records requests flooded agencies with demands so extensive they hindered basic operations and prompted calls for limits on how much time staff must spend responding to such requests.
While public records laws are designed to promote transparency and accountability, county officials say the scale, concentration, and campaign-driven timing of Ackley’s requests have required the sustained involvement of multiple departments, redirected labor away from daily operations, and imposed substantial but unquantified costs on county government.
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108 Comments
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Cool, Sheriff wannabe raising my property taxes one public info request at a time for his own vanity.
I’m glad he is requesting these records,we need transparency That is why the system is designed this way.To ensure that the county isn’t holding back important documents in a way that hides any wrongdoing.Are we complaining about doing the job you knew that these requirements were part of in the beginning.This is for an election and to compare this situation to other counties that weren’t is reason enough to dig deeper.Sounds like an attack on on a candidate using county resources to sway an election,and employees joining in as well as the current sheriff.Is that right!!!!!!!Absolutely not.
Let me guess. Ackley supporter???
And that is why they get audited – by professionals! The public records request law wasn’t intended to place undue burden on staff for political purposes.
You can’t even put a space after a period. Systems are good, abusing the system for personal (or in this case family) gain is bad. Dude worked there for how long? Doesn’t he have the inside smoking gun he needs? Probably means there isn’t one or he’s complicit in it.
Welcome, to the internet “Gregory Davis” where you don’t have to identify your self.
State auditors provide transparency. All this is doing is taking time from county employees that could be doing other more important work that putting together how many copiers the Sheriff’s Office has and how much paper they use in a month. I’m for transparency but submitting dozens of requests isn’t the way to do it, if he thinks it will help then hit the high points, pick 10-20 that will get you the votes you want then if you win do something about all the others.
And if you can’t use your real name here,then your opinion shouldn’t be admissable in this conversation either.What are you hiding!
OR… hear me out… Maybe the SO should charge him as policy and State law allows.
Why does it take forever just to get a straight answer on which deputies have what training? Come on, every decent company keeps those records straight for OSHA and everything else.
Sheriff Bizzell has done an outstanding job over the years. He came in during the 1990s and has kept the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office running effectively in that same 90s style. No one’s claiming he did a poor job. But it’s time to bring the department into the 21st century and align it with modern standards seen across the rest of the country.
He is no longer the right guy for the job.
You don’t even know what you’re talking about. The Sheriff’s office IS aligned with the 21st century.
“One public records requests seeks information on the number of copy machines used by the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office, paper usage, and maintenance contracts.”
I’m sorry, what? This is clearly a fishing expedition for political dirt at the expense of the Johnston County taxpayer. Didn’t this guy work there a few months ago? Why didn’t he count the copy machines while he was there?
Silly to show the picture of one copy machine, if it was to prove a point that the office is incapable of doing their job! It is our right to request public records as NC citizens and not get blasted for seeking information. What are they doing? It has been over one year!!! Use our tax money, since it seems to be so easily used by others without asking, to hire people to make copies or to research for requested documents.
I agree. There is a word we use in the financial world in reference to audits and budgets…material. In a $30 million budget, anything over 5-10% is considered material. That would be $150,000 in this case. Instead of being concerned about the amount of paper, number of copy machines and the content of past texts, a better use of time would be to address current issues.
If there is a concern over group chats and emails, this is more of a personal vendetta than wanting what is best for the county and it’s citizens. Playing I gottcha is not purpose of elections. Striving for the greater good for everyone should always be paramount. And yes, I did use my real name.
Couldn’t agree more.
Why didn’t he just gather that info when he worked there the first time or when he worked there the second time, or even the third time. Oh yea he was probably on his 2 hour lunch break at the gym. Although he complains about having to answer his phone on lunch. If he gets elected is he going to just quit and walk out when he gets mad about something?
Real name please,is this a bot,Are these verified as a real person before responding.This is started to look like a gaslighting attack on a candidate by some county resources.Im not saying all by no means.Imnjust saying something is off about the comments and this article is one sided.That is not how public service and government resources should be used.I think this needs further investigation to be honest.Have a blessed day everyone.
Someone got promised a big job if Ackley is elected. Right, Gregory?
The reality is it’s one sided because that’s how this vote is gonna turn out because the Ackley/Southerland ticket isn’t that popular, shocking.
Bizzel can’t complete 80 requests in a year?!?! What the heck is his department doing?!?!?
The request were 80 but with 15 subsections with 13 parts each. Crap like wanting to know what all 200+ employees had for lunch everyday how long they took and did they answer their phone. All group texts from everyday in every department equally over 9000 pages of phone records and that’s just part of one request…
You’re telling me that they couldn’t do it in A YEAR?!?!? C’mon, how lazy is too lazy?
How unreasonable is too unreasonable? Please justify some of the requests listed… and that’s not even all 80+!!
It’s fairly simple to produce documents in 2026. It’s more than likely the unwillingness to do so. PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE is key…. If you are unable to get the information how public is it???!!! That’s where the problem lies
Ramona, did you actually read only SOME of his requests? “It’s 2026” doesn’t mean it’s automatically easy to compile some of the ridiculous requests he is making…
I have to agree with you, but I as a tax payer, why aren’t we billing this person/group whatever at the rate at our (as a tax payer) are funding this persons desire to find fault with the department. Open the records , but don’t use my tax money to fund a witch hunt. If there’s a problem then refund that portion.
Because any citizen has the right to public documents… If not, it leaves the door wide open for corruption.
Correct, but when does it cross the line of being abused? 20? 84? 100? 1000 in less than a year?
Hmmm. I dunno. Maybe serving warrants, arresting criminals, and doing all the IMPORTANT things.
Read between the lines.
Hmmm. I dunno. Maybe instead of doing the job of the federal government and looking for illegals, they could do IMPORTANT things like responding to citizen requests in a timely matter!
You never fail, to show your room temp IQ. The country voted for the removal of illegal immigrants, per THE LAW!!! you think a public records request, trumps a crime? Especially a records request that “on purpose” delays the job of the dept. for a political gain, on the tax payers dime? Wow 👏 give it up for ol’ big brains over here. I wonder what I’d see if I requested your public records?
@Starsky: Illegal immigration and border protection is a function of the FEDERAL government — not your local sheriff. The fact that you don’t mind your LOCAL taxes and LOCALly elected officials being usurped by the FEDs shows your IQ. Try reading the Constitution. You Socialist Snowflakes don’t understand the IMPORTANT difference between FEDERAL and LOCAL.
Room temperature IQ is giving him too much credit.
Tell the Truth thinks law enforcement stops at the county line.
His IQ is below freezing.
Hmmm…With all due respect, If you think prioritizing agenda-based paperwork requests over enforcing the law is best practice, then you just might be part of the problem.
Did you even read the article??
Regardless, Bizzell has my vote.
Bahasa, says the sheep
Exactly! Randy you can blow all the money you want on your campaign but, its already over. Only a few in this county will vote for you, and that’s because, they are on a personal level with you. I’m sure even those relationships are sub-par, due to your fantastical bland personality. I’ll say it again, you’ll never win in this county, if you were going to run for sherriff, you should’ve been a more personable person. Maybe…..move and try another county. THIS IS BIZZELL COUNTRY!
Wow Man!
Youre mean about that. 😉
Whatever is true should be open to all
so let’s let Facts speak … whatever that is
Randy Ackley is only wasting his and other’s time. As long as Steve Bizzell runs, he will be Sheriff of Johnston County. Actions like this, looking for things only cements the case that we already have an excellent Sheriff.
Just another reason why Ackley is not Sheriff material and has no business being sheriff. He doesn’t even have any supervisory experience at all and wants to manage a $30 million dollar budget..
Ackley is laughably petty. Shouldn’t be a cop let alone sheriff
All this wasted effort just to end up not being elected. Maybe he should pick a better career, like social just warrior in Minnesota.
Boo freakin’ hoo. Part of being a government organization is dealing with public records request. Quit your crying and do your job.
That could be part of their job dealing with the “Karens” of the world, and their relentless requests. At some point it has to be deemed inappropriate, unreasonable and just plain abusive. I would rather have my sheriff office solving crimes, patrolling, jail, courthouse etc… They would need to hire 2 full time workers to sort, research, redact and publish the requested information. I don’t want to pay for that. I mean all group texts from every division and 27 years worth of certain things? Ridiculous !!!!
“all emails sent or received by administrative personnel during the last 12 months, all group chat messages, including text messages, used by the Major Crimes Division, Property Crimes Division, or any other division-specific group chat, Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) shift maps and movement logs for Sheriff’s Office patrol units on specific dates”
Well he definitely won’t get any votes from his former coworkers now that they know he already wants to micromanage them. These requests sound very personally motivated…
Sounds like this want-to-be Sheriff has too much time on his hands. Better to out campaigning in-person rather than pestering officials for nonsensical information that has no bearing on this candidates qualifications. I think I’ll stick with Steve.
There are reasons he’s requesting certain types of information. Shake the nest and we’ll see what happens. This might be a good thing folks.
Like service records and paper usage for the printers? Employee group texts and emails? As a tax payer I can confidently say I do not care about these and it is a waste of time, money, and resources to make these frivolous requests at my expense. And that’s just a few out of 84 total requests!!
Wasn’t he just apart of that nest? I might FIOA his records.
Biased opinions are 28-4. I predict the election results will be a similar percentage in our Current Sheriffs favor!
Good idea!!
I guess this guy has no plans to go back into law enforcement if he loses the election. Seeing all his petty and personal info requests, I bet nobody would want to work within a mile of him or hire him.
80 FOIA requests and, thankfully, the guy still has no chance at winning.
Guy’s just trying to be a PIT backside.
Sheriff B’s got my vote .
Stop Randy. This seems politically motivated. Just stop and don’t complain. Let the voters decide.
Must have hired RonJons campaign strategist..their advice “if it feels like you’re losing blast and overwhelm the institution you want to lead with pettiness and blame”. Records request are a huge part of public service and transparency but having worked there I’m sure Mr. Hackley knew how difficult it would be to provide.
dandy ackley is trying to use a harassing amount of records requests to fuel a poorly run campaign. who ever is advising him should be called out too. especially if its a local, trying to waist all those taxpayer dollars. submitting more requests in ONE year than they have received in the LAST FIVE years combined???? plus let his former co-workers find out he’s trying to spy on them by getting their group chat and text messages i bet it wont be pretty. dandy ackley aint too sharp
How ironic, Randy “Safeword” Ackley wants access to others’ text messages and emails. Maybe he should provide his private FB messages…
With less than a month remaining before the election, does he have the man/womenpower to review all that he is requesting? I agree, with his request for all personnel emails, messages, etc., he will have a hard time gaining the trust of the employees of the sheriffs dept.
@Curious: Aren’t you curious to know why Bizzel has had this request for a year, but only waited until now, a month before the election, to complain? #ThingsThatMakeYouGoHmm #VoteOutIncumbents
The requests did not come all at one time. Maybe majority of the requests have come within the past couple of months. Maybe the county should show when the requests were submitted.
Why are you posting anonymous,this is not right.Have a blessed day everyone,Transparency please.
Because Randy’s campaign would get even more embarrassed if they posted their name with these crazy comments. Plus the fact that they are blaming Steve for “complaining” when the article clearly states Joco report asked and staff answered questions is just another lie from a campaign full of hogwash. Notice the @tell the truth aka Randy’s campaign ain’t say why he asked to see private text messages from his coworkers what a weirdo.
Annonymous posts can still be truthful! The entire article is about transparency. Being transparent about the insanely petty, and large number of records request Ackley is asking for. You can’t run a campaign on “transparency” then get upset when transparency makes you look even worse.
With all due respect- how do we know you are actually Gregory Davis? And if you are, which Gregory Davis are you? There are so many….
Anonymity allows freedom of speech without repercussion. We are allowed to share things we know, but shouldn’t know. We can provide an opinion that may not align with our employers or coworkers. Anonymity is important for such a forum, especially in such a small town and county.
Could you be using bogus fake name?
For someone seeking the office of sheriff to be so petty, it speaks volumes about their character. We do not need a Sheriff like Mr. Ackley in JoCo. We need a Sheriff who takes care of their county citizens and their employees. The only person qualified is Sheriff Bizzell.
I’ve never seen so many comments before is the sheriff job really that important the deputies do all the work the sheriff just smiles and looks pretty
Looking at his former coworkers group text doesn’t seem political, it’s just creepy…
Seems that the contender is trying to take advantage of the system and me, the taxpayer. All the costs associated with the request should be billed to whomever is making them on Ackley’s behalf, and the cost should be paid up front.
I was gonna vote for him but after seeing this I can’t do it This is childish shxx I’m sorry
Can anyone explain his request for “current tattoo policy” for me? No Really I am truly asking I don’t get it? Thanks.
If you have certain obscene tattoos or any that could be considered by someone as offensive you had to have them covered while in uniform. Deputies are held to a higher standard in dress and appearance than plain old city cops. No beards, neat trimmed hair, no ball caps etc…..
@ Truther, Thanks. Can’t say that I have never met or come in contact with any sloppy, obscene, nor( just for@ TTT) “anti-American” Johnston County Sheriff’s Deputies!! So why does this Ackley “REALLLY” give a rat’s dupa about this!
@Sotired: Do you think it is appropriate for deputies to have tattoos showing anti-American imagery?
If there were a policy to cover certain tattoos when on duty, and those tattoos are kept covered yeah that’s fine with me. What is Anti American to some, might not be to others….
But what is Ackley really trying to accomplish with this BS? Is he trying to establish some creepy enemies’ list??? Mankind at least in My America have free will, and freedom of expression.
Obviously, it seems to me, that ackley is attempting to imply that bizzell is trying to “hide” something by making these numerous requests knowing it will be difficult to produce so many. If he feels that sherriff bizzell is somehow wasting money I would think it would be better to make these claims and then let bizzell rebut it with documentation. As for me, I haven’t heard of any claims about money in the sheriffs department being wasted for the last several years bizzell has been in office.
This guy is playing hardball. I have to admit I’m impressed. But all for naught. Sheriff Bizzell in a landslide.
He is doing what needs to be done.. The good ole’ boy system Bizzell has been doing for years is ridiculous.. I commend Eckley for getting answers for how the S. O. is being ran.. I for one am ready for a change and will encouraging everyone to stop and truly think about their vote. Letting you know where your hard earned tax dollars go should be something you all think about. I don’t work my butt off day in and day out for some “elected” office to throw my money away on stupid things and it not be allocated for the right things. God Bless all candidates and keep it clean and to the points we Johnston county residences care about.
In reviewing the records requests mentioned in this article, it seems like if someone received all that information, they could potentially cause harm to the Sheriff’s Department – via malware, physical harm, etc.
Software used? Drones? Training Records of Detention Officers? Even the copier contracts could be used for harm.
That is just scratching the surface. Thinking past what is written….
I can tell you this much for sure. If you are a taxpayer and you care about penny pinching, Sheriff Steve Bizzell, is your man. If you have ever worked with him or for him you will know what I’m talking about. He watches every cent like it’s his own money. Randy however even stated he wanted to double the agencies staffing!!!! That would mean 30 million budget to more than 60 million overnight if as long as it took to procure the people, vehicles, equipment for all of them.
I’ll stick with the best, Sheriff Bizzell and you can keep your “Change”…
First time I ever met Randy was at the ABC store red flag !!! Then when he took his fans with him to enter his name in the race and standing beside him where 2 ***** ******** So no never would I vote for him
Was he at the ABC store handing out campaign flyers to customers with his wife while she was working there??
84?!? I bet this doesn’t even include the ones that crazy lady wrote on his behalf!
RANDY ACKLEY IS THE ONLY CANDIDATE WORTH VOTING FOR IN THIS ELECTION. Those who would complain about his FOIA requests don’t care about what JoCo, bizzell and the good ‘ol boys have been hiding for years! If you work, especially as a police officer when you’re on call, even during lunch, would you expect to be paid, do you believe you should be paid for overtime? RANDY and the deputies do! The fools who belittle Randy Ackley don’t know that he’s more educated than the sheriff, has actually worked as a deputy for over 20 years is NC Advance Certified, know nothing about him personally, has a solid marriage and is a fine Christian. He has EVERY RIGHT to challenge how our taxpayer money has been spent. The County is 18 deputy SRO’s short in our elementary schools, short of patrol deputies and jail officers and he runs the sheriff’s office like we’re still in the 20th century. Educate yourselves and vote for RANDY ACKLEY!
Oh here we go lying, fear mongering Jim. I don’t know if he’s intentionally lying like he did on his F3, or if he is just ignorant. 18 elementary schools huh? Bet you can’t name them, I mean unless you lie again. We have 40 SROs in the county and about 48 campuses soooooo… of course there are always some vacancies. Maybe if any agency in Joco would hire you, you could be an SRO. But nobody in their right mind would hire this guy. A self proclaimed expert in everything. He likes to keep adding accolades as he goes.
I’ll say what Randy won’t, you’re not doing him any favors endorsing him. You’re costing him votes if anyone really knows your ridiculous claims. You’re just mad at the sheriff because he wouldn’t hire you
James is a Ackley campaign donor right, probably a campaign worker. Why don’t you tell us what purpose Randy has to request to spy on his coworkers text messages? Why does The Randy want more tax payer funded records requests filled than have been asked in the last five years combined? Tell us why we the taxpayers should pay for Randys campaign material, why should we foot the bill for his fishing expedition to try to get negative messaging? You and Randy should be ashamed of yourselves, probably why he has a hard time looking people in the eye.
You backing him is the disclaimer!! Those ‘advanced’ certificates stop being impressive when everyone else has them.
Your name sounds familiar are you that Northern nut job that ran a few years back? This ‘good ole boys’ network is the DUMBEST thing ever. Who’s benefiting? You can’t even say because there isn’t one and if there was Randy was just apart of it a few months ago now he wants his ‘good ole boys’ network to reign. See how dumb this argument gets? Plus I’m more educated than you, Randy, and the Sheriff, should I be the Sheriff?
bizzell is the last person who would like for the public to see these records.
Lying Jim still butt hurt nobody in Joco would hire him. Randy not going to either Jim, to much liability with your past
Bottom line on public request for information is they say the cost to provide has been substantial but not quantified. Why not quantified? How can you charge for a service if you can quantify the cost? That is lack of accountability for time spent. Emails and chats on the Count dime are not PRIVATE. Anything confidential would be redacted before being released. Tons of money can be wasted without oversight of spending. That goes for time as well. Accountability is not optional.
You must be completely living in another world if you believe a person can be in that type of office for 28 years and not become complacent to their responsibilities like he’s just coasting to retirement that is long overdue like people be real be honest Randy Ackley has a heart for the people of Johnston county This whole election is simply about doing what is best for Johnston County . He has not gone on a smear campaign against bizzell he has had plenty of opportunities and shown his true colors by exposing true undeniable facts about what has been lacking and what he would do to improve even so much that bizzell began making the necessary adjustments and improvements by addressing basic needs such as body cameras , body armor that was outdated etc . Plain and simple there is not a realistic amount of sheriff deputies for this county currently employed we are drastically understaffed to the point of emergency response times are affected THAT IS A ISSUE !
It’s not until you need help for a emergency will you realize and by then it may be too late ! I said all this so you can re think your stance Bizzel thank you for your 28 YEARS OF Service Go retire and enjoy retirement TIME TO MOVE ON
Randy isn’t even running his own campaign. His father in law just runs around commenting on things and since he deactivated his personal Facebook how can he even be running the campaign page?
Even if it was time to move on from Sheriff Bizzell, I’d never vote for Randy now, not the way he’s conducted himself and his campaign.
This sounds like ol’ sheriff Bizzell is shook. Why worry about public records requests if there is nothing to hide in the JCSO? Maybe the public needs to know how tax money is being used by the JCSO. If we demand this information from other elected officials, what is the problem with requesting it about the JCSO?
It shouldn’t be a problem, but whe it’s excessive and irrelevant just to set up your argument of “they won’t give it to me”, it’s a problem. Printer service records? Group texts from his former coworkers? Come on man, you even know you think that’s silly.
Many of these comments are not even reasonable, so I skipped the whining. Truth is, our county now has over 200,000 people and the SO can’t produce under 100 FOIA requests? It’s a matter of record keeping. If they have to outsource or get an auditor, do it. It’s a good way to tell if the record keeping is sloppy. I welcome the information and we should be doing that in many other offices in our government. These are not the Epstein files being requested! Geez people. Lastly, I don’t have anything to say about Bizzell other than it’s time for a new sheriff. Been there too long. Randy Ackley is a breath of fresh air for this county and all that say otherwise have dark glasses on.
So spend MORE taxpayer money so someone can be hired to respond to public information requests about printer maintenance records, all employee emails and text messages, etc…? Got it.
While Sheriff Bizzell’s tenure appears to be nearing a natural transition point, any potential successor should be carefully evaluated based on leadership experience, qualifications, demonstrated ability to serve the community effectively, and their professionalism and ability to interact respectfully and constructively with the public. At the same time, many in the county continue to support Sheriff Bizzell and would prefer that he remain in the role until he chooses to retire.
Steve Bizzle can! he hasn’t gotten complacent. He’s gotten better with experience and knowledge. he has collaborated with all of those people across the state that he’s built relationships with over the last 28 years that cannot be replaced, especially by someone who has no personalityor the political pull Bizzell does. We are blessed, he has saved us taxpayers millions of millions of dollars by balancing a budget keeping us safe without overly policing. Just recently built the new detention center and the public safety center under his close Watch. He provided the deputies with new equipment, innovative training, and upgraded the search and rescue team, Swift water rescue team and tactical team. He has done so much more in just the last 3 to 5 years that doesn’t look like complacency to me. He’s a great steward of the taxpayers money.
Randy’s plan is just to basically double the budget and a crap load of deputies. I’ll take quality over quantity any day.
Obviously people are very passionate about their candidate. I’m glad people love their county and understand the important role that the Sheriffs office plays in many different aspects. From the courthouse, Law Enforcement, school security, civil process, security in many different events and venues and so much more. These men and women are the backbone of our county. I respect all of them for being willing to put their lives on the line or doing what’s necessary for the safety of the public, especially during a disaster or major event.
The records requests were puzzling to me until someone put it to me like this. “I wanna know what you had for lunch every day for the last 27 years on a spread sheet and I can’t understand why you can’t just print that out for me.” “ Do you mean you don’t know? You haven’t got records of it? “
The information he is asking for It’s not something that’s easily gathered and in some cases not required to be retained. It’s in an effort to make it look like the SO is covering something up but in reality it’s just stuff that records aren’t kept on.
Let me give you all an inside view of this man’s thinking.
He used his pull to place signs without the permission of the owners. When questioned he was very defensive. One law broken. The wind destroyed one of his signs and I was accused of tearing it up. Thank God for camera footage. If this man gets elected I will be on the hit list for sure. lol. I personally do not like the man or the way he is running his campaign. But that’s my personal opinion. But I am a Bizzell Supporter all the way!!
Why is Randy Ackley campaign being run by a very very prominent and successful DEMOCRAT? Why do he need a DEMOCRAT to run him in aREPUBLICAN primary? IS RANDY even a REPUBLICAN??? This is MESSED up
https://www.theblueridgetimes.com/news/republican-sheriff-candidate-hires-campaign-consultant-with-strong-ties-to-democrats
That helps explain a lot about how this campaign has been run. The focus has been on vague calls for “change” and on public records requests that don’t appear to address the real issues facing the department.
Saying “I’m going to hire more deputies” sounds good, but it doesn’t mean much without a clear explanation of how those positions would actually be filled.
Mr. Ackley raises a number of concerns he believes are problems, but he hasn’t offered concrete solutions for how he would address them.
So Brad Crone consults both sides of the aisle? Thats smart.
Well, well, well somebody New trying to run against Steve Bizzle again. Steve Bizzle Johnston County good old country boy. He’s doing a great job. He’s not perfect. Randy Ackley just worked for the sheriff department a short time. Steve Bizzle work for the sheriff department a very long time there’s a big difference knowing your county and don’t know your county and the people. All this rubbish. What’s wrong and what is going right blaming who and blaming who. I’m going with the experience old saying is don’t change nothing when it’s not perfect and not broken just make it better. Sheriff Steve Bizzle does protect Johnston County and its people , knowing his laws and running the Johnston County Sheriff Department. This is all about who you’re voting for Steve Bizzle you have my vote.
I have never seen so much ignorance in my life. People come on here and bash others severely, handling a political campaign like a bunch of monkeys from a zoo. Regardless of who you are voting for and/or who wins, the way you all are acting by throwing out personal attacks to each candidate, speaks volumes about your own CHARACTER. When this is all said and done both men still have families and CHILDREN remember that.☮️