CATAWBA COUNTY, N.C. — The Catawba County Sheriff’s Office said it’s taking steps to hold deputies accountable after a third deputy from the department in a year’s time was charged with DWI.
The sheriff’s office said in all the cases, the deputies were off duty when they were arrested and were immediately fired after they were charged.
The most recent case was when an off-duty deputy with the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office was fired on Saturday hours after he was arrested for driving while impaired in Granite Falls, according to police.
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Granite Falls police said Ryan Lee Hamby, 30, was arrested on Saturday at around 3:30 a.m.
Police said an officer responded to a Murphy Express convenience store on Hickory Boulevard for a report of a suspicious truck at the fuel pumps.
The store clerk called police for help and told officers a 2013 GMC truck had been at the gas pumps for an hour with the engine running and the driver inside possibly passed out. She didn’t know the man behind the wheel was an off-duty sheriff’s deputy, according to investigators.
“I have someone that has been sitting up here for an like hour with their truck turned on. I think he’s passed out drunk,” she said in the 911 call.
The responding officer found Hamby in the truck when he arrived and quickly formed the opinion that Hamby was impaired and arrested him, police said.
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Police said Hamby agreed to a breathalyzer test and blew a .15 -- nearly twice the legal limit. Hamby was taken before a Caldwell County magistrate, where probable cause was found to charge him with driving while impaired, police said.
Just days before Hamby’s arrest, the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office spotlighted him as the March employee of the month for for stopping a reckless driver in a stolen car on March 1.
According to a post on the sheriff’s office’s Facebook page, Hamby tried to stop the suspect driving along Highway 10 West that day. The suspect drove off and eventually got stuck on a private drive off of Zion Church Road.
Hamby removed the suspect from the car while also applying a tourniquet to the suspect’s leg to control the bleeding until paramedics arrived, the post said.
Hamby’s investigation showed the car was stolen from Lincoln County earlier that day and the suspect was wanted on multiple felony charges.
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The former deputy is scheduled to appear in the Caldwell County District Court on June 16 for Saturday’s DWI.
Sheriff’s deputies spoke with Channel 9 on Monday about both Hamby’s arrest and two other deputies arrested for DWIs, including one where a patrol car was damaged after the officer picked it up for work in June 2021.
“The sheriff holds all of his employees to a higher standard,” said Captain Aaron Turk.
He went on to say the department is making changes from within to address the concerning trend.
“We are speaking with our deputies and looking at bringing in some additional educational opportunities that would raise awareness and possibly identity triggers for any employee that might have substance abuse issues,” Turk said.
According to records at the Catawba County Justice Center, one of the deputies arrested last summer has been convicted for DWI. The other deputy is scheduled to go to court next week.
Residents shared their thoughts with Channel 9 on if law enforcement should be held to a higher standard.
“What they do on their off time is their business,” John Bama said.
“If you do the crime you do the time,” Carolyn Herman said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re law enforcement or somebody who works in a factory.”
Channel 9 has reached out to the district attorney about whether or not the criminal cases handled by the three deputies would be impacted. We have not heard back yet.
(WATCH BELOW: Driver charged with DWI in wreck that killed motorcyclist, Gastonia police say)
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