COURTESY GINA HICKS

Gina Hicks, a former detention officer at the Mecklenburg County Jail, is running to unseat incumbent Sheriff Garry McFadden in the Democratic primary.

A former Mecklenburg County detention officer wants the top job.

Gina Hicks announced her candidacy for sheriff last week by criticizing the management of first-term incumbent Garry McFadden, who was elected in 2018. Both are Democrats.

“The operations were always run by staff using several unique and strategic principles called direct supervision,” Hicks said in her announcement. “In fact, the facilities were specifically designed to operate under the nine principles of direct supervision and the 21 principles of managing. Under the current leadership, this is not happening.”

Hicks, an 18-year veteran who was fired by McFadden in 2019, was a detention officer in several departments, including substance abuse and behavioral health. She was assistant facility commander where her duties included training staff, operations, and implementing department policy.

“In all my years of experience at the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office – and I’ve worked for three administrations – whom all followed the concepts of direct supervision without regard to individual and political views,” Hicks said. “We grew into a professional organization quickly becoming the flagship in detention facilities across the country. I can remember other detention organizations traveling to the Mecklenburg County Jail just to observe our facilities so they could return home and model our operation. I can assure you nobody wants to model what is going on today.”

Hicks, the first Black woman to run for sheriff, slammed conditions for incarcerated people and staff at the county’s jail during McFadden’s tenure, noting officer assaults and a letter from the state Division of Health Service Regulation to his office requesting a reduction in residents due to staffing shortages sparked by COVID-19. As a result, she contends, the jail is less safe for officers and inmates.

“Some would say when you deviate from design you are guaranteed to fail,” she said. “You create chaos and foster an unprofessional work environment where both officers and inmates are not safe. When staff do not feel safe, they leave. When staff leave, the causes and effects are felt by all, and it is now evident.”

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