Billy McGee

Billy McGee is the sheriff of Forrest County, Mississippi, (county seat is Hattiesburg). He gained notoriety for working against the federal government in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He is considered to be a Robin Hood figure by the majority of the citizens of Forrest County MS.

In the afternoon of September 4, 2005 Sheriff McGee sent three deputies to the FEMA Distribution Center co-located at Camp Shelby. They asked the coordinator why the trucks weren't moving out and the coordinator told Them that the eleven ice drop-off points had not been completely set up yet. The deputies immediately commandeered two semi-trucks and their drivers and started to move out. U.S. Army Captain Michael Bryant climbed on the step of one of the trucks and tried to talk to the driver. The deputies removed him from the truck and handcuffed him. The deputies then carried Bryant to the county jail and arrested him for disorderly conduct and interference with a police officer. He was returned to Camp Shelby within the hour. CPT Bryant claimed he sustained injuries to his hands, arms, face, and shoulder. He also claimed he sustained nerve damage to his hands from the handcuffs being too tight. The trucks were taken to two communities that had been without a working water system since the storm hit.

Sheriff Billy McGee is being charged with interfering with, intimidating and impeding a federal officer. The three deputies involved are all facing federal felony charges.

He was scheduled to plead guilty to a federal misdemeanor charge in a plea agreement with U.S. Attorney Dunn Lampton, the U.S._Attorney_for_the_Southern_District_of_Mississippi. Mr. Lampton, however, has recused himself and the case has been transferred to the U.S._Attorney_for_the_Middle_District_of_Louisiana in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

As of April, 2006, Forrest County law enforcement officers are not allowed onto Camp Shelby property.

McGee was re-elected sheriff of Forrest County on November 6, 2007.

External links

* [http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060224/NEWS01/602240303/1002 Hattiesburg American article 2/24/05]
* [http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050909/NEWS05/509090330 Hattiesburg American article 9/9/05]
* [http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/anderson.cooper.360/blog/2006/03/this-folk-hero-sheriff-could-face.html Anderson Cooper Blog on Topic]
* [http://www.kz94.com/Haulin_Ice_-_Doug_Vinson_and_Phil_Coley.mp3 Folk Song: Haulin' Ice]
* [http://jayfo.livejournal.com/216618.html Local Blog of incident]