KINGMAN — The question of whether Craig McKee would continue serving as Chief Deputy Mohave County School Superintendent after pleading guilty in a drunk driving injury accident was first answered the same day of his May 20 sentencing hearing. Mohave County confirms that McKee, 59, Kingman, tendered his resignation the same day he was placed on work-release-eligible probation and sentenced to jail for 180 days.
So, McKee did not return to work after all, and has remained in jail since he was sentenced by Judge Doug Camacho. While Camacho’s sentence provided opportunity for daytime release for work, with night time and weekend lockup, it was subsequently learned that he was not eligible for work release because of a sheriff’s office policy not affording the privilege in the instance of a class four felony conviction.
McKee’s attorney, Richard Strohm, launched a bid to trim his client’s jail time.
“Unfortunately, the jail policy makes no exceptions and therefore Mr. McKee is facing 6 months in jail without the possibility of working every weekday,” Strohm’s motion said. “The unintended collateral damage caused by this overly broad jail policy will strip Mr. McKee of his employment.”
Noting that noted McKee would have spent about half of his jail sentence confined and the other half on work release, Strohm asked Judge Camacho to halve the 180 day sentence to 90 days.
Stating belief that the imposed punishment is appropriate and that he has no authority over jail work release policy, Judge Camacho denied the motion by minute order on June 3.
A recruitment campaign is currently recruiting to find a new Chief Deputy School Superintendent.
McKee should be released just ahead of Thanksgiving to complete the four-year probation period ordered by the Court. Two men were hurt last November in the McKee-caused two vehicle collision in west Kingman.
