From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
TRUSSVILLE –There’s a new sheriff in town. And, for the first time in Jefferson County history, he’s an African-American.
Mark Pettway, a 25-year law enforcement veteran and currently a detective with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, unseated Mike Hale on Tuesday.
With 98% precincts reporting in Jefferson County, Pettway (D) garnered 51.4 percent of the vote to Hale’s (R) 48.6 percent in a close election.
Hale, who held on as Democrats swept most Jefferson County offices in the 2010 and 2014 elections, had served 20 years as the JeffCo sheriff. He was not able to overcome the Democrat avalanche in Jefferson County on Tuesday.
“Mark Pettway will be a fine sheriff,” Hale said in his concession speech on Tuesday night as he promised a smooth transition.
At his watch party in Midfield, Pettway said school safety was a key factor in his election platform.
“It wasn’t until October that he had enough officers for the schools,” Pettway told Birmingham Watch. “That should have been done before school started. He’s been in there 20-something years. He should have had a plan already implemented before school started.”