Mississippi Sheriff Faces Federal Charges
By Melissa Charbonneau
White House Correspondent
CBN.com ? WASHINGTON ? A Mississippi sheriff is in hot water with the Bush administration for his actions after Hurricane Katrina.
The Justice Department is threatening to federal charges against the man some call a modern- day Robin Hood.
"He was hauling ice down the road, going as fast as he could. Was he breaking the law? No. He was doing good. There was a hurricane in Hattiesburg, but he didn't think twice. Sheriff McGee was hauling ice."
They call Sheriff Billy McGee the "Ice Man." He is the subject of a song, of bumper stickers pushing him for governor, and banner headlines across Mississippi.
To residents of Forrest County where he is a four-term sheriff, McGee is a hero.
But to the Justice Department, he is a lawbreaker who might deserve to be thrown in jail. McGee's alleged crime came after Hurricane Katrina, when he commandeered FEMA ice trucks to help survivors who desperate for ice and water for nearly a week after the storm.
McGee faces prosecution for interfering with federal officials at a FEMA staging site at Camp Shelby. The sheriff and his deputies handcuffed and detained a national guardsman who tried to stop them from moving two 18-wheeler truckloads of ice that had been sitting here for days.
Forrest County resident Shone Kendrick said, ?If it wouldn't have been for what Billy did to get us ice, there'd have been a lot of people in a lot of pain.?
McGee seized the ice and brought it to a high school, where school superintendent Kyle Nobles helped hand it out.
?The cars would come in this way and head out that way," Nobles said. Nobles says the sheriff did what he had to do.
?There was almost a hysteria in the community because no one knew, there was so much uncertainty,? explained Nobles. ?No one really knew what was going to happen next. And so it got to the point we were desperate.?
McGee's deputy Scott Morrison says fema's stockpiles of ice were not getting to victims isolated in remote parts of the county.
Morrison said, ?They promised us all day every day, it's coming, it's coming, and they said they didn't have it?Say that President Bush was Sheriff of Crawford, Texas, and the same exact situation happened. Would he have sat back and just done nothing, or been the great leader I think he is, and done something for the people??
Some here say that McGee deserves a medal for taking action when fema and the Feds failed them.
?It was a matter of life and death for some people,? said Joey Simmons, of the Carnes Volunteer Fire Dept. ?I mean, old people can't do without stuff. [They have] heart problems ? [there are] diabetics, all kinds of illnesses. They needed ice and water. They didn't have it!?
?You had people ? diabetics -- who had insulin and needed ice. You had people with babies needing bottles with formula that needed to be iced down and cold, and he went above and beyond the call of duty,? added Carnes Volunteer EMT Kasey Jones.
Paula Lee says that the ice McGee brought them gave some relief to her elderly mother-in-law, just days before she died.
?We were keeping my husband's 90-year-old mother, who was dying, and all she could keep down was ice chips. And we had no ice,? Lee said. ?I feel like that contributed to her death because she was dehydrated. You could tell she was wasting away.?
With possible federal action against him, the community has rallied to McGee's defense with petition drives, fundraisers, and county commendations.
McGee told a local reporter at WDAM-TV, "All the prayers that have gone up on my behalf, and all that's been done on my behalf only strengthens my resolve to continue to serve the people of Forrest County and do the best I can do. And with your prayers and support, we'll get there.?
McGee says he considers what he did a break with protocol, not a violation of the law. ?I regret where I am today,? McGee said, ?but I don't regret my actions.?
The sheriff's father Bobby McGee, remarked, ?It's just eating him up because he don't feel like they're justified in pursuing this thing.?
McGee's father says his son has faced worse battles; he was diagnosed with leukemia in 1983.
But the threat of prosecution is taking its toll.
?One of the saddest things to me is what it's doing to my grand young-uns, the daughter and the little son,? said McGee?s father. ?They've been worried to death ever since this thing broke about losing their daddy, about their daddy going to prison.?
The Justice Department had no comment on the case, transferring it to a Louisiana federal prosecutor, who is now deciding whether to bring charges against a sheriff some see as a modern-day robin hood.
Jones said, ?Just like it says in the story, he went and done what was right. He helped the poor out, the community out, the people that needed the help more than anything.?
?I think it?s horrible,? Lee said. ?Why would they punish a man that was trying to help people??
Simmons declared, ?He's just a super guy, and he did what others should have done.?
As the song goes, "Sheriff Billy was willing to take the heat, so the rest of us could get back on our feet. He was hauling ice down the road going as fast as he could. Was he breaking the rules? No, he was doing good."
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By Melissa Charbonneau
White House Correspondent
CBN.com ? WASHINGTON ? A Mississippi sheriff is in hot water with the Bush administration for his actions after Hurricane Katrina.
The Justice Department is threatening to federal charges against the man some call a modern- day Robin Hood.
"He was hauling ice down the road, going as fast as he could. Was he breaking the law? No. He was doing good. There was a hurricane in Hattiesburg, but he didn't think twice. Sheriff McGee was hauling ice."
They call Sheriff Billy McGee the "Ice Man." He is the subject of a song, of bumper stickers pushing him for governor, and banner headlines across Mississippi.
To residents of Forrest County where he is a four-term sheriff, McGee is a hero.
But to the Justice Department, he is a lawbreaker who might deserve to be thrown in jail. McGee's alleged crime came after Hurricane Katrina, when he commandeered FEMA ice trucks to help survivors who desperate for ice and water for nearly a week after the storm.
McGee faces prosecution for interfering with federal officials at a FEMA staging site at Camp Shelby. The sheriff and his deputies handcuffed and detained a national guardsman who tried to stop them from moving two 18-wheeler truckloads of ice that had been sitting here for days.
Forrest County resident Shone Kendrick said, ?If it wouldn't have been for what Billy did to get us ice, there'd have been a lot of people in a lot of pain.?
McGee seized the ice and brought it to a high school, where school superintendent Kyle Nobles helped hand it out.
?The cars would come in this way and head out that way," Nobles said. Nobles says the sheriff did what he had to do.
?There was almost a hysteria in the community because no one knew, there was so much uncertainty,? explained Nobles. ?No one really knew what was going to happen next. And so it got to the point we were desperate.?
McGee's deputy Scott Morrison says fema's stockpiles of ice were not getting to victims isolated in remote parts of the county.
Morrison said, ?They promised us all day every day, it's coming, it's coming, and they said they didn't have it?Say that President Bush was Sheriff of Crawford, Texas, and the same exact situation happened. Would he have sat back and just done nothing, or been the great leader I think he is, and done something for the people??
Some here say that McGee deserves a medal for taking action when fema and the Feds failed them.
?It was a matter of life and death for some people,? said Joey Simmons, of the Carnes Volunteer Fire Dept. ?I mean, old people can't do without stuff. [They have] heart problems ? [there are] diabetics, all kinds of illnesses. They needed ice and water. They didn't have it!?
?You had people ? diabetics -- who had insulin and needed ice. You had people with babies needing bottles with formula that needed to be iced down and cold, and he went above and beyond the call of duty,? added Carnes Volunteer EMT Kasey Jones.
Paula Lee says that the ice McGee brought them gave some relief to her elderly mother-in-law, just days before she died.
?We were keeping my husband's 90-year-old mother, who was dying, and all she could keep down was ice chips. And we had no ice,? Lee said. ?I feel like that contributed to her death because she was dehydrated. You could tell she was wasting away.?
With possible federal action against him, the community has rallied to McGee's defense with petition drives, fundraisers, and county commendations.
McGee told a local reporter at WDAM-TV, "All the prayers that have gone up on my behalf, and all that's been done on my behalf only strengthens my resolve to continue to serve the people of Forrest County and do the best I can do. And with your prayers and support, we'll get there.?
McGee says he considers what he did a break with protocol, not a violation of the law. ?I regret where I am today,? McGee said, ?but I don't regret my actions.?
The sheriff's father Bobby McGee, remarked, ?It's just eating him up because he don't feel like they're justified in pursuing this thing.?
McGee's father says his son has faced worse battles; he was diagnosed with leukemia in 1983.
But the threat of prosecution is taking its toll.
?One of the saddest things to me is what it's doing to my grand young-uns, the daughter and the little son,? said McGee?s father. ?They've been worried to death ever since this thing broke about losing their daddy, about their daddy going to prison.?
The Justice Department had no comment on the case, transferring it to a Louisiana federal prosecutor, who is now deciding whether to bring charges against a sheriff some see as a modern-day robin hood.
Jones said, ?Just like it says in the story, he went and done what was right. He helped the poor out, the community out, the people that needed the help more than anything.?
?I think it?s horrible,? Lee said. ?Why would they punish a man that was trying to help people??
Simmons declared, ?He's just a super guy, and he did what others should have done.?
As the song goes, "Sheriff Billy was willing to take the heat, so the rest of us could get back on our feet. He was hauling ice down the road going as fast as he could. Was he breaking the rules? No, he was doing good."
Translate
