Nancy Guthrie Update: Pima County Officials Take Action Against Sheriff

The search for Nancy Guthrie, the mother of Today host Savannah Guthrie, continues over three months after she disappeared from her home in the Catalina Foothills of Tucson, AZ.

As the search continues, Pima County sheriff Chris Nanos has been dominating the headlines for all the wrong reasons. He took the brunt of a verbal onslaught from FBI director Kash Patel, who blamed Nanos for allegedly blocking the FBI from the case.

Nanos denied the allegations, but has found himself back on the headlines this week.

Pima County Supervisors Call on Chris Nanos to Resign

Two members of the board of supervisors for Pima County are moving against Nanos, attempting to get the sheriff to resign.

Dr. Matt Heinz, a Democrat, and the five-person board’s only Republican, Supervisor Steve Christy, both told Fox News Digital they plan to move to have Nanos’ office vacated at a meeting next week following allegations that he lied about a history of suspensions and other disciplinary actions he received in the 1970s and 1980s as a member of the El Paso Police Department.

Heinz alleges that Nanos lied under oath.

"He lied under oath to the board about his separation from El Paso PD," he said. "And we will consider referring his perjury to the [attorney general] for prosecution."

Christy is ready to take immediate action against Nanos.

"My position is that unless in the next few days before the board meeting next week, if he doesn't resign or if he doesn't retire in an honorable fashion, which is available to him, then I will move and I will support any effort by the Board of Supervisors to vacate the office, which is part of the regulation," he said.

Could Chris Nanos Be Removed From Office?

Fellow supervisor Jen Allen previously noted that removing Nanos from office would be "a stretch."

When the supervisors ordered Nanos to submit a report about his duties and work history, they did so under ARS 11-253 — an Arizona law that allows supervisors to demand sworn statements from county officers.

Despite the fact his statement wasn't made under oath, Allen was dubious about his removal from office.

“If a report is not made, then the position can be vacated. But there is no precedent that describes how that happens, what that looks like. So it’s incredibly mushy,” Allen said before revealing it would be a “stretch” to remove Nanos.

“It would be a stretch,” she said. “It would be a stretch.”

Heinz also admitted it would be a challenge, but also revealed another potential punishment for Nanos.

"If the board doesn’t want to move ahead with vacating the office, I’m pretty sure that they will want to do something meaningful like a resolution expressing lack of confidence and the referral for prosecution," he said.

Official Wants Chris Nanos to Turn Case Over to FBI

In addition to calling on Nanos to step down, Heinz also wants the sheriff to officially cede control of the investigation to the FBI.

"It’s ridiculous. Almost every other local jurisdiction would have done so by now. Actually, it usually happens within days because then the FBI covers the vast majority of the cost of the investigation instead of the county or city," he said.

"So, aside from maybe NYC, LA, Chicago, Houston and some other large cities, any other jurisdiction would have asked for the FBI to take the lead."

Guthrie remains missing 96 days after she initially disappeared.

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source https://www.mensjournal.com/news/nancy-guthrie-update-officials-issue-new-statement-chris-nanos-sheriff