Curtis Knight named interim sheriff in Monroe County

MONROE COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – There is a new sheriff in Monroe County.

On Tuesday, former sheriff Cecil Cantrell turned in his resignation. A move that surprised everyone.

Wednesday, the State Auditors office confirmed it is investigating the former sheriff.

But the department still has a job to do and someone to make sure it gets done.

Curtis Knight is the face of the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department until January.

After careful consideration, the Monroe County Board of Supervisors appointed the former chief deputy to the post of interim sheriff.

“Today’s decision was a joint decision between the board of supervisors, the Sheriff-Elect Kevin Crook, and Chief Deputy Curtis Knight there is a lot of discussion about it. There were several different ways it could have gone, and we all agreed that this is the best way to transition,” said Board President Billy Kirkpatrick.

Knight served as the chief deputy for nearly eight years.

The board said this experience will help make the transition easier.

“I can’t speak for everybody at the sheriff’s department, but I don’t think there’s anybody over there that has any question of Curtis Knights ability to lead that department,” said Kirkpatrick.

Now that Sheriff Knight has been sworn in he said it’s time for the real work to begin.

“I’m going to sit down with the Sheriff-Elect Crook we have a lot to look over. Employees, with the budgets, motor vehicles. There’s a lot more than just the aspect of law enforcement, which is the key, but we need these other things to be able to perform the job,” said Sheriff Knight.

There to help him out is Sheriff-Elect Kevin Crook.

Supervisors appointed Crook as chief deputy, giving him what he said is a unique opportunity.

“I have a few months to observe, and we can get the ball rolling and casting a vision for what 2020 is going to look like. Letting people know as soon as possible whether their positions are going to be involved in the new direction we are going as a department. So I think that’s a good thing also for them that we will have that time to talk through those things and prepare,” said Crook.

When this current term ends, Sheriff Knight said he will step down and resume his position as a chief deputy. Sheriff-Elect Crook will then be sworn in as sheriff.