JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — At a press conference Wednesday with Undersheriff Pat Ivey to kick off the 2022 hurricane season, Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry said he didn't know Sheriff Mike Williams moved to Nassau County until last week.
It's a move that goes against the city's charter.
Curry said Sheriff Williams called him after On Your Side's Kailey Tracy asked the question about his residency status in a one-on-one interview last week.
"I think you guys had asked the question of the sheriff," Curry said. "He called me and told me he had just got the question. He told me that he had moved. I would say, look, the legal opinion, the legal answer on this the lawyers will figure that out. I'm not weighing in on that," he said.
Curry said it doesn't bother him that he didn't know sooner.
"It doesn’t matter to me if someone tells me where they move, or when they move and I wasn’t aware of the residency requirement,” Curry said.
The city charter, which essentially is Jacksonville's constitution, says the sheriff "shall reside in Duval County," and says if he moves out of the county, his seat becomes vacant.
Williams said he's protected because in 2010, the Florida Legislature repealed a law requiring sheriffs to live in the county they serve. Charter experts say that did not override local residency requirements, however.
"Mike Williams was elected by the people of Jacksonville. I can say I've worked closely with this sheriff for seven years now, through many crises, mass shootings, hurricanes, working to drive our murder rate down, invest in our kids, and he's always engaged, and he's always involved," Curry said.
"People can debate the residency thing," Curry continued. "Don't start saying the guy's been absent, he's been a bad sheriff, because that's just not true."
"We can’t rewrite history, and Mike Williams has been a public servant for his entire life. He has put his life on the line for this community on the street, as a SWAT team member and he has been a good sheriff. The public knows that and they have seen him in times of crisis. They have seen him react and respond and we’ll have to let the legal process play out," Curry said.
"He's been a great sheriff. You can't dispute a guy that's done three decades serving this community and his track record, period," Undersheriff Ivey said.
Ivey said he can't speak on morale in the department as a result of the sheriff's move.
"I’m related to two policemen. My son and my son-in-law are in the department. I’ve actually not even had this conversation with them," Ivey said.
According to the Supervisor of Elections Office, Williams changed his voter registration to Nassau County from Duval Friday. That was one day after First Coast News' interview with him.
The city attorney has a deadline of two p.m. Thursday to provide his legal binding opinion on the issue to City Council President Sam Newby. If the city attorney, Jason Teal, finds the sheriff violated the charter, city council will hold a special meeting to vote on whether to schedule a special election for the sheriff's seat.