The Story Behind That Viral Derpy Dem Sheriff … And Of COURSE It Involves A Corruption Scandal

The clip that made him go viral is bad enough… but it drew attention for something else most of us probably never heard about in the first place.

But for this clip, we might have remained blissfully ignorant that there was an important hearing going on in the State Capitol of North Carolina.

It was a hearing where Sheriff Sheriff Garry McFadden was called up to answer for some serious allegations said to have happened under his watch.

Republican Rep. Allen Chesser began the questioning, as many such hearing might, by establishing some of the basics and building step by step beyond that. To the surprise and chagrin of Rep Chesser, he got stuck much earlier in this process than even his most cynical expectations might have prepared for.

Here’s one of the many places where his conversation was posted.

WATCH: North Carolina Sheriff Gary McFadden doesn’t know which branch of government he falls under, or even what the three branches of government are. 🙄

This explains the confusion around carry permits and why he thought he didn’t have to issue them. pic.twitter.com/jo34i9pmts

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) February 9, 2026

The questions were remedial to begin with, and were intended to be ‘the buck stops here’ type boundary setting. They quickly became something very different.

‘If I were to classify your position as the highest law enforcement officer in the county, would that be a fair description?’

(He agreed)

Q: And as such, you made reference earlier that you are a constitutional office. My colleague made reference that there are constitutional divisions among responsibilities between us [legislators] and you. What branch of government do you operate under?

A: Mecklenberg County.

Q: What BRANCH of Government do you operate under, Sheriff?

A: Constitution of the United States

Q: Correct. That is what establishes the branches of government. I’m asking which branch you fall under.

A: Mecklenberg County. I’m a duly sworn Mecklenberg County sheriff, we answer to the people of Mecklenberg County.

Q: This is not where I was anticipating getting stuck. Are you aware of how many branches of government there are?

A: No.

Q: Ok. For the sake of debate, I will move on and say there are three branches of government, Legislative, Executive, and judicial. Of those three, which do you believe you fall under?

A: I believe I fall under the last one.

Q: Would you say it to me?

A: Judicial.

Q: Okay. You are incorrect sir.

That’s the clip that went viral for all the reasons you might think it did.

But if you stop at the ridiculousness of the clip, you miss the entire reason he was called up to his hearing in the first place.

Because of instances like the murder of Iryna Zarutzka, and other questions of public safety — including the degree to which police are (or are not) cooperating with immigration enforcement, leaders were called up to give answers.

But the Sheriff of Mecklenberg county has a high opinion of himself, being ‘proud to be the elephant in the room’ despite the fact that he’s in the middle of an investigation.

The oversight hearing was previously scheduled for Jan. 29, but GOP committee leaders pushed it after a court ruling limited their ability to talk about the suspect in the Zarutska case, DeCarlos Brown. Committee leadership alleged in a court motion that ruling was unconstitutional, and a court hearing is scheduled for Wednesday. Despite the focus on transit safety before the hearing, much of the day was involved committee members and McFadden trading barbs. The embattled sheriff faces four primary challengers in the upcoming March election while under investigation by the State Bureau of Investigations. The SBI’s effort was triggered by a since-dismissed petition to remove McFadden from office that alleged misconduct and mismanagement. — Charlotte Observer

The investigation involves not only an allegation of the Sheriff calling and giving what was understood to be an ominous threat to a legislator for voting against him on a bill, in which he is claimed to have said ‘I don’t want to see you get hurt. You live in my county.’

Other aspects of the investigation kicked off last month include abuses of his office as detailed below:

The petition accuses McFadden of using official resources of the sheriff’s office to work on his campaign website. McFadden has previously announced his intentions to run for reelection in 2026 and faces several challengers.

McFadden also directed on-duty MCSO deputies assigned to dignitary duty to escort officials in town for a conference to bars and strip clubs, the petition alleges.

A former MCSO sergeant who signed the petition said she saw detention officers get assaulted by inmates who were not later charged.

The sergeant, Marcia Crenshaw Hill, said in the petition that she was herself stabbed by an inmate. — WBTV

More about those charges here:

🚨#BREAKING: Democrat Charlotte NC Sheriff Gary McFadden, is now under investigation for, "attempted extortion and corruption…"

A NC state rep says the sheriff THREATENED her if she voted in favor of an immigration bill the required sheriffs to cooperate with federal… pic.twitter.com/GPjWV1jkG2

— Matt Van Swol (@mattvanswol) January 6, 2026