Dear Citizens of Pitt County,

Elections are about the future. The best way to forecast the future is to look at past performance. I am proud to stand on a record of solid leadership marked by achievement and innovation that has propelled the Pitt County Sheriff's Office to be among the best law enforcement agencies in the east and a leader in the state.

When I first ran for sheriff in 1998, I promised to reorganize the Sheriff's Office, reduce the number of supervisors and put more officers on patrol.  The result has been a dramatic reduction in our average response time to calls for service. I also promised high visibility and community based law enforcement.  The result is a 26% drop in the crime rate (1998-2009) in the municipal and unincorporated areas of the county that are policed by the Sheriff's Office. Furthermore, I promised diversity in our hiring and promotion practices. Never in the history of the Pitt County Sheriff's Office, have as many minorities been appointed and promoted to high ranking positions, than during my administration. However, that is not the end of the story.

Little did we know that within ten months of taking office, we would be handed the task of conducting the largest evacuation of rural residents ever in our county's history. That the emergence of youth gangs and drive-by shootings would threaten the peace and tranquility of our neighborhoods and most especially the safety and security of our children. Could we possibly have known that an international extremist organization would perpetrate a devastating attack on America, forever changing and shaping the future of law enforcement? We have met every new challenge head on.

During three terms in office, we have effectively responded to every threat to public safety and to the shifting trends in criminal conduct.  We introduced objective jail classification and electronic offender monitoring to mitigate jail overcrowding and promote cost avoidance, saving millions of taxpayer's dollars. We organized our first gang unit and instituted gang prevention programs. We introduced Crisis Intervention Team training to improve our response to the mentally ill and developmentally disabled in order to divert them to treatment instead of jail.  We built and now operate a modern crime lab that is second to none east of Raleigh. We have prepared ourselves with training and acquired equipment (heavy duty trucks, boats, and a helicopter) to be better prepared for whatever natural or manmade disaster lies ahead. We are a leader in domestic violence prevention and victim service programs. We track registered sex offenders above and beyond what is required by law. We've dramatically increased the successful service of civil papers and the collection of court judgments in fulfilling our unique duties as the enforcement arm of the civil courts. We harnessed the volunteer spirit of the county in forming our Volunteer Mounted Patrol and our volunteer off road ATV search and rescue team. We further tapped that spirit by using volunteer pilots in our aviation program.

The Sheriff's Office has taken a hard stand against drug trafficking and associated violent crimes through our narcotics enforcement program and participation in area task forces. We expanded the scope of our investigative efforts to attack the diversion of legal pharmaceuticals into the illicit drug trade. We ramped up our drug enforcement efforts by fielding a criminal interdiction unit to target the transportation of illicit drugs into and throughout our county by way of the highways.

The Sheriff's Office has participated with federal authorities in counterterrorism investigations and preparedness as well as enforcement of immigration laws to identify criminal illegal aliens.

We accepted the call last year from the Governor's Crime Commission to lead a statewide human trafficking task force to root out and stop this detestable form of modern day slavery in labor markets and the lurid sex trade. Ours is the only human trafficking task force between Florida and Maryland.

We carefully planned the design of our recent jail expansion to include a pre-booking area to streamline the arrest process for all law enforcement agencies and maximize the efficiency of the booking procedures through the magistrates' office and jail intake.

We promote personnel development through our incentive pay plan which rewards professional growth and development with progression through the county's pay grades.

We embrace technology and have implemented sweeping upgrades to records keeping, case management and mobile computing. The Sheriff's Office has been a leader in interoperable communications and internet based data sharing with agencies at the local, state and federal level. We continually seek improved methods in our crime scene investigations, evidence identification and crime lab.

For more than a decade under the guidance of my administration, the Pitt County Sheriff's Office has proven itself to be leader in law enforcement. I believe that my experience, training, education and proven track record positions me as the most capable candidate to carry the Sheriff's Office into the future. Our achievements are the product of forward thinking and innovative ideas. It is on this foundation of hard work and a vision to build on our progress that I ask for your continued support and your vote.  

With my warmest regards,

Mac E. Manning, Jr.

Sheriff

Pitt County

Proven leadership for the twenty-first century!

Developed the Electronic Offender Monitoring Program (EOMP) in 2006 to  reduce jail overcrowding and save taxpayer dollars. This cost avoidance program supervises offenders released from jail under strict guidelines, utilizing global position tracking technology.  The program has been so successful, that other agencies across the state are using it as a model for similar programs in their jurisdictions. The EOMP unit operates under the PCSO Detention Division.

Consolidated the School Resource Officers (SROs) and the Gang Unit under a unified command in 2007. Added two truancy officers to promote school attendance, to keep kids off the streets and out of trouble. Developed a summer youth program known as the Gang Resistance and Intervention Program (GRIP). Implemented the G. R. E. A. T. program (Gang Resistance Education and Awareness Training) with trained SROs in targeted schools in 2008. This approach brings multiple resources to bear on youth gangs and juvenile delinquency. This strategy continues to evolve under the Special Operations Unit within the PCSO Community Operations Division.

A leader in forming North Carolina's first statewide Human Trafficking Task Force in 2009, following a request by the Governor's Crime Commission to lead this federally funded effort. Includes a human trafficking investigator for PCSO and partnerships with law enforcement, prosecutors and human service organizations around the state.

Introduced Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training to law enforcement agencies down east in 2007, to improve service and response for mentally ill and developmentally disabled citizens. More than fifty (50) Pitt County Sheriff's deputies have since been trained and certified.

Instrumental in promoting, obtaining funding and implementing the use of the statewide VIPER 800 trunked radio network in Pitt County starting in 2005. A cooperative effort by all Pitt County law enforcement agencies, culminating in the final phase with installation of dispatch consoles and mobile radios in 2009 under a CopsTech grant obtained and managed by Greenville P. D.

Serves as vice chair of the State Interoperability Executive Committee. The major work of this committee is the writing and maintenance of the Statewide Communications Interoperability Plan (SCIP). Operates as a subcommittee of the State Emergency Response Commission (SERC) under the N. C. Department of Crime Control and Public Safety.

Served for three years on the state communications interoperability working group for the federal Homeland Security Grant Program.

Maintains the Domestic Violence Prevention Program with innovative programs and strategies to reduce domestic violence and protect victims. Most recently, managed a statewide pilot project  in 2008 using electronic monitoring to supervise defendants on pre-trial release for domestic violence related offenses. Demonstrated a measurable reduction in repeat offenses during the pre-trial phase in supervised cases.

Added chemical drug testing to Pitt County's forensic crime lab to aid in enforcement efforts against illicit drugs and to reduce the waiting time on lab reports for the prosecution of drug traffickers. Decreases the number of days in jail awaiting trial, thereby serving to reduce jail costs for pretrial detainees. Operates within the Crime Scene Identification Unit under the PCSO Criminal Investigation Division.

Opening a new jail booking office and a 192 capacity jail housing unit in 2009.

Acquired a surplus military helicopter and outfitted it using seized money and assets from drug dealers in 2007.

Instituted the use of Problem Oriented Policing (POP) plans by patrol deputies to promote community policing in their respective patrol sections. This policing strategy is managed within the Community Patrols Division of the PCSO.

Assigned a detective in 2008 to investigate the diversion of legal prescription drugs to illicit sale and abuse. A second detective is planned for 2009 with grant funding. This enforcement effort operates within the Narcotics Unit under the PCSO Criminal Investigation Division. 

Formed the Criminal Interdiction Unit in 2007 by combining the resources of the Sheriff's Traffic Accident Reduction (STAR) unit and the canine (K-9) program. This strategy has fielded the most formidable highway drug and felony interdiction team ever assembled by the department.

Added a Computer/Financial Crimes detective in FY 08/09 to investigate all matters related to internet crime and identity theft.