A North Carolina sheriff is under criminal investigation after he wrecked his county-issued patrol car and did not report it to police; instead, he left the scene and went home.
According to Beth Purcell, Jacksonville Public Safety PIO, Sheriff Hans Miller of the Onslow County Sheriff’s Department accident is being investigated by Jacksonville Police Department.
On February 9, 2021, Miller said he was driving on Western Boulevard going to a meeting just after dark when he cut a corner a little too short, blaming the accident on fog on his windshield and limited visibility.
Sources who was where Miller was that night said that he was leaving a Women’s Republican Club meeting and was told to leave because he was too intoxicated.
When local reporters asked Miller what meeting he was going to, the time of the meeting, and where the meeting was, he declined to disclose that information. Miller also refused to give the make, model, or year of his county-issued vehicle.
It is against the law in North Carolina for a person, including the sheriff, to not report a reportable accident to the police, according to G.S. 20-166.1.
Any person(s) who fail to report a reportable accident is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
The damages caused by the sheriff are over $3,000.
