SMITHFIELD -- A deputy clerk to the Johnston County Board of Commissioners has been suspended after her arrest last week on drug charges.
Melissa Ann Daughtry, 32, of Princeton was arrested Jan. 31 and charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession and possession of drug paraphernalia. The following day, she was suspended without pay from her job as a deputy clerk and paralegal, according to Johnston County officials.
During their investigation, Johnston sheriff’s deputies also arrested Daughtry’s boyfriend, William Joseph Hill, 24, of Princeton. He is charged with possession of a firearm by a felon and three counts of trafficking in methamphetamine.
The arrests occurred on Baker’s Chapel Road near Smithfield; both Daughtry and Hill listed addresses on Quarter Horse Road near Princeton. Sheriff’s Capt. Chris Strickland said further details on the investigation weren’t available yet.
As deputy clerk, Daughtry passed out agendas at county commissioners’ meetings, and she filled in occasionally for Johnston County clerk Paula Woodard. She was hired in 2006 and makes an annual salary of $40,306.
Johnston County’s human-resources director, Lu Hickey, said the county handles criminal charges against employees on a case-by-case basis. The county has no set policy for what disciplinary action to take. Daughtry is due in court March 22.
Campbell: 919-836-5768
