Nancy Guthrie sheriff to get dragged to hot seat as stalled case stirs up past scandals

The Pima County Board of Supervisors has voted unanimously to resistance embattled Sheriff Chris Nanos into a proceeding to reply questions, with assistance from extracurricular ineligible counsel arsenic scandals equine implicit allegations of perjury and retaliation against his subordinates — and arsenic the hunt for missing Nancy Guthrie enters its 3rd period with nary resolution.

Nanos is facing renewed scrutiny from section leaders implicit his portrayal of his aboriginal vocation past arsenic his section seeks answers successful the disappearance of Guthrie, the parent of "Today" co-host Savannah Guthrie.

While immoderate critics person blasted Nanos implicit his handling of the 84-year-old's suspected abduction from her location connected Feb. 1, others person unrelated concerns — including allegations of perjury successful a deposition tied to a caller First Amendment suit filed by 1 of his ain deputies.

The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to person the sheriff travel successful and reply questions astir his enactment past on with issues regarding his absorption of personnel, interior affairs, and different enactment issues successful the department, nationalist records show.

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A divided representation of Nancy Guthrie, a missing pistillate successful Tucson, Arizona and parent of "Today" amusement big Savannah Guthrie and Sheriff Nanos from the Pima County Sheriff's Department. (Courtesy of NBC and Getty Images)

The sheriff, who declined to remark connected the board's decision, was not accused of wrongdoing successful transportation with the Guthrie probe during the meeting.

At a committee gathering past week, the docket included clip for ineligible proposal implicit however to code allegations of perjury against Nanos.

During a caller deposition, Nanos said helium had ne'er been suspended arsenic a effect of disciplinary enactment portion moving arsenic a instrumentality enforcement officer.

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An undated photograph of Nancy Guthrie and Savannah Guthrie provided by NBC successful effect to the disappearance of the 84-year-old parent of the Today Show host. (Courtesy of NBC)

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According to nationalist records published alongside the committee gathering agenda, helium had been suspended repeatedly arsenic a constabulary serviceman successful El Paso, Texas, and resigned successful lieu of termination earlier helium came to Arizona successful the aboriginal 1980s.

The documents bespeak helium was suspended for aggregate weeks aboriginal successful his vocation for things similar excessive force, coming to enactment late, nonaccomplishment to study for work and firing a weapon inappropriately.

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Pima County sheriff Chris Nanos was seen astatine a hoops crippled connected Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)

According to the Pima County Deputy's Organization, his department's labour union, helium besides said successful his archetypal exertion that helium near the El Paso Police Department successful hunt of amended wage and for idiosyncratic reasons.

"He did not disclose that helium resigned successful lieu of termination," the national wrote successful a Facebook post. "Lying connected your exertion would prohibit anyone from being hired."

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Annie Guthrie, her hubby Tommaso Cioni, and Savannah Guthrie astatine their missing parent Nancy Guthrie's location connected Monday, March 2, successful Tucson, Arizona. (Fox News)

Timing for Nanos' quality successful beforehand of the committee was not instantly clear, but the board's extracurricular counsel is expected to draught connection for the petition by April 7.

The hostility with different elected officials wrong the region is simply a distraction for the sheriff that could person a antagonistic interaction connected the probe into Guthrie's disappearance, according to Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD sergeant and erstwhile transgression justness professor.

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Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos gives an update connected the probe aft the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old parent of U.S. writer and tv big Savannah Guthrie, who went missing from her successful Tucson, Arizona, U.S. connected February 5, 2026.  (Rebecca Noble/Reuters)

The unit could unit an unnecessary error, helium warned, and could besides trickle down to the detectives connected the case.

"When the enforcement is nether stress, helium continues to marque micromanagement moves," helium said. "Investigators suffer the quality to deliberation connected their ain and alternatively crook astir and say, 'Well, let's conscionable hold for the brag to archer america what to do.'"

When promoted to a supervisory presumption successful his ain career, Giacalone said, a cardinal portion of proposal helium received was to fto the detectives bash their jobs without interfering.

The board's ballot is the latest successful a bid of incidents involving the sheriff.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos speaks to the media connected Feb. 3, 2026, successful Tucson, Arizona. He was answering questions astir the hunt for Nancy Guthrie, the missing parent of NBC big Savannah Guthrie. (Jan Sonnenmair/Getty Images)

At a gathering connected Nov. 12, 2024, the supervisors had initially planned to ballot connected a question to censure the sheriff implicit his attraction of his rival during the 2024 race. She was Lt. Heather Lappin, past the Republican campaigner for sheriff. He was besides accused of taking unconstitutional actions against different governmental foe, Sgt. Aaron Cross, the president of the Pima County deputies' union.

The committee besides accused Nanos of utilizing his bureau "in an effort to smear his governmental opponent" and surmised that "it is wide that the committee of supervisors indispensable successful information enactment to guarantee accountability."

Read the letter:

But a lawman region lawyer told the supervisors they didn't person the ceremonial powerfulness to contented a censure and suggested they could look ineligible ramifications.

So the board, 4 Democrats and a azygous Republican, voted unanimously to petition an probe from the authorities lawyer wide oregon the U.S. Department of Justice.

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"During the caller election, Sheriff Nanos placed 2 employees of the Pima County Sheriff’s Department connected paid administrative permission pending an probe into imaginable violations of authorities and national law, and interior policy. One of the employees was his hostile successful the November General Election," letters from the committee to some agencies read. 

"Of interest to the Board of Supervisors is immoderate imaginable usurpation of authorities oregon national laws by Sheriff Nanos, which whitethorn see utilizing his authoritative capableness to interaction the result of an predetermination and/or repressing the rights specified nether the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution of an individual."

That was successful the days aft the election. Nanos has present served much than a twelvemonth of his latest term.