CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Sheriff’s offices across North Carolina are fighting a familiar challenge finding and keeping enough qualified deputies to keep pace with growing communities.
A WCNC Charlotte survey of seven counties found a mixed bag: some agencies are near full strength, while others are carrying dozens of open positions that can take months to fill.
Mecklenburg County showed the highest vacancy rate among agencies surveyed, with 56 open deputy positions out of 313 authorized, a rate of nearly 18%. Wake County followed at about 10%, with 41 openings out of 422 authorized positions. Cabarrus County sat at roughly 7%, with 19 vacancies out of 256 positions. Iredell County reported a 5.1% vacancy rate, Union County was at 3.6%, and Catawba County had just over 1% of its 180 deputy positions open…