Mooresville Police Chief Placed On Leave Amid Complaints

MOORESVILLE, NC — Mooresville Police Chief Damon Williams was placed on administrative leave with pay Monday amid an internal investigation, according to a Town of Mooresville spokesperson.

“While state law prevents disclosure of a personnel matter, this action was taken pending the final review of the internal personnel investigation involving the police department that is being conducted by an outside agency,” Kim Sellers, spokesperson for the town, said in a statement.

“This action is solely a personnel matter and was not based on any allegation or suspicion of criminal activity,” she said.

The investigation was launched due to complaints of a hostile work environment, WSOC reported.

The decision by town officials to place Williams on leave was made late in the day June 3 and at the recommendation of the outside agency that had conducted about 70 interviews while investigating the claims, the Mooresville Tribune reported.

Williams has served as chief of MPD since 2016.

The investigation was launched in February amid complaints of a hostile work environment within the police department “and then branched into other areas,” the newspaper said. According to Interim Town Manager Ryan Rase, Williams will be on paid leave until the completion of the formal investigation report, which could be early August.

In the interim, the police department is being led by Deputy Police Chief Gerald Childress.