Feb 2024. Blues Vol 40 No. 2

AROUND THE COUNTRY MARS

AROUND THE COUNTRY MARS HILL, N.C. North Carolina Police Chief Jon Clark was fired after soliciting nude photos from the wife of a subordinate. MARS HILL, N.C. – Jon Clark is the former chief of the Mars Hill Police Department in North Carolina. He was originally suspended without pay Sept. 20, 2023, before being terminated later in October for multiple allegations of misconduct, including soliciting nude photos from the wife of a subordinate, according to reports. Clark had been with the small agency since 2016 and spent two years in the position of police chief. When allegations of misconduct became known last year, the town hired U.S. Investigative Security Services based in Huntersville, to conduct the investigation, Citizen Times reported. The third-party investigation sustained multiple allegations of misconduct, to include soliciting nude photos from the wife of a subordinate, mishandling firearms in his office, insubordination, and misuse of a town-issued car, according to Clark’s termination letter obtained by The News-Record & Sentinel. Town Manager Nathan Bennett listed several reasons for Clark’s termination in the letter dated Oct. 16, 2023, according to the Citizen Times. The first was for engaging in inappropriate actions toward the wife of then-Capt. Chad Wilson, who was later named to be Clark’s replacement as chief of police, effective Jan. 1. “Your conduct in attempting to pursue a romantic relationship with the wife of one of your officers is reprehensible,” Bennett noted in the letter of termination. “To actively solicit that relationship is unforgivable and put your entire Department and the Town of Mars Hill at risk. To have attempted that relationship showed great lack of judgment, and could have resulted in a situation where you would have been publicly embarrassed and embarrassed this Town.” When commenting on the termination, Bennett said, “There was never a picture shared, but he asked two different times.” The town manager also confirmed that Wilson approached him with screenshot evidence after the ex-chief sought the photos via SnapChat, Citizen Times reported. “The next day, I called Jon up here to suspend him pending an investigation, and I present him those things, and he admits to me, ‘Yes, I sent those,’” Bennett said. On the day the article was originally published, Jan. 8, Clark was employed by the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, where he served as a school resource officer at Madison Early College High School, according to the Citizen Times. It is unclear whether Clark remains employed by the Madison County Sheriff’s Office since media calls to Sheriff Buddy Harwood went unanswered. 38 The Blues - February ‘24

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