In a memorandum dated May 7, 2009, Vance County Sheriff Peter White requested that Henderson Police Chief Keith Sidwell cease and desist from enforcement action outside of the Henderson Police Department’s jurisdiction.
At the center of the issue is what, exactly, is the jurisdiction of the Henderson Police Department.
Accord to White, the jurisdiction of the Henderson Police Department is governed by North Carolina General Statute 15A-402. A reading of that statute suggests that city police departments are limited to within one mile outside of the city line.
However, NCGS 15A-402 is not the only North Carolina law at issue. Chapter 780 of 1967 Session Law gives the Henderson Police Department the authority to enforce the law in all of Vance County. According to White, as stated in his memo, the Henderson Police Department only has jurisdiction outside of the city to “‘suppress disturbances’ as stated in Chapter 780 of 1967 Session Law above.
The relevant section of the law, Section 26 referred to by White reads:
“Police Jurisdiction. The members of the police department and the chief of the department shall have all the powers and authority now, or which may hereafter be vested in sheriffs and constables for the preservation of peace of the city and for suppressing disturbances and arresting offenders, which authority of the police department shall not be confined to the corporate limits of the city, but may be exercised anywhere in Vance County.”
In his memo, White states that Sidwell operated outside of his jurisdiction with Operation Blue Lightning, a training exercise conducted on April 21 – 23, 2009. White writes that he has confirmed that Sidwell was out of his jurisdiction with the North Carolina Attorney General’s Office as well as the North Carolina General Assembly Research Division.