Johnston County Had Just Two Full-Time Narcotics Detectives — During a National Drug Crisis

Let’s be honest about what happened.

In December 2023, while the United States was facing the deadliest drug crisis in its history, Johnston County — with over 250,000 residents spread across 795 square miles — had just two full-time narcotics detectives.

Yes, there were also two task force officers assigned to federal agencies:

• One assigned to the DEA

• One assigned to the ATF

  
  

But those officers wore multiple hats, working federal cases that often extended beyond the county. They were not full-time, locally focused narcotics investigators. That meant the county’s front-line narcotics enforcement relied on just two full-time detectives to cover a rapidly growing population during an unprecedented drug epidemic.

 And Johnston County isn’t just any county. It sits at the intersection of I-40 and I-95 — two of the most heavily trafficked drug corridors on the East Coast. Fentanyl, meth, heroin, and cocaine don’t just pass through here — they circulate, distribute, and devastate.

 In that same time frame, 3,125 doses of Narcan were distributed in Johnston County — a grim reminder of how deeply this crisis has affected our families and communities.

And yet, instead of strengthening the team, the county scaled it back.

The reasoning?

“Drug dealers have gone mobile.”

Exactly.

That’s why you build an interdiction unit.

That’s why you increase, not decrease, your narcotics capabilities.

That’s why you don’t leave over 250,000 people and 795 square miles in the hands of:

• 2 full-time narcotics detectives,

• 1 DEA task force officer tied to federal casework,

• and 1 ATF task force officer with split jurisdiction and limited local focus.

  
  

That’s not a strategy — that’s survival mode. And it’s not enough.

But here’s what makes it worse:

 When lives were at stake in a national crisis, they downsized.

 But let someone announce their candidacy for sheriff — and suddenly, they ramp up drug raids, start pushing local news coverage, and try to manufacture a sense of momentum.

You can’t out-kick the coverage you scaled back.

The evidence shows it — both here in this post, and with a simple glance at the public record.

That’s not leadership. That’s reaction dressed up as strategy.

And the people of Johnston County see through it.

Other counties in similar positions have responded with:

•  Mobile interdiction teams

•  Intelligence-driven narcotics units

•  Strong partnerships with state and federal agencies — without weakening local enforcement

  
  

Johnston County deserves the same — and more.

You don’t fight a mobile, lethal threat with a skeleton crew. You don’t ignore your geography and pretend the drug trade doesn’t target your roads and communities.

And you don’t tell grieving families “We didn’t have the people” when you were the one who reduced the people.

Johnston County deserves better:

 Leadership with vision

 Law enforcement that adapts

 A sheriff’s office ready to meet today’s challenges — not yesterday’s comfort zones

Because drug dealers may have gone mobile — but our sheriff’s office should never go missing.

Randy Ackley

GOP Candidate for Sheriff