Mooresville Mayor to Step Down After Months of Controversy

Mooresville Mayor Chris Carney announced Tuesday that he plans to leave office Sept. 30, following months of pressure from town commissioners and controversy surrounding an after-hours incident at Town Hall.

Carney announced his departure near the end of the Sept. 8 Board of Commissioners meeting, characterizing the decision as a retirement.

“This mayor job takes a lot of time and takes a lot of energy,” Carney said.

Carney said he hopes Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Qualls Dingler can transition into the position Oct. 1. Under the town's process, commissioners are responsible for filling the mayoral vacancy.

The announcement follows a 4-2 vote by commissioners in April approving a resolution of no confidence and formally requesting Carney's resignation.

At the center of the controversy is an Oct. 10, 2024, incident involving Carney at Mooresville town hall during the early morning hours. Records surrounding the incident showed motion detectors were activated and police responded to the building twice.

Carney later acknowledged that alcohol and anxiety medication were factors that night.

The incident also triggered a lengthy public records dispute over surveillance footage from town hall.

In April, a judge ordered the town to release the footage, which showed Carney walking through portions of town hall without pants. The town appealed the order.

The legal battle has also raised questions about taxpayer costs. More than $70,000 had been spent by the town as of June in litigation related to withholding the surveillance footage.

Public criticism continued during Tuesday's meeting. Several residents spoke against Carney before he announced his departure, criticizing both his conduct and his response to residents who questioned his leadership.

Carney maintained that his decision to leave was based on completing the goals he had established for his tenure.

“The deal I made with my wife, we had a list, and we wanted to get the list done and when the list was done, I was done,” Carney said.

Carney's departure will bring an end to a nearly two-year controversy involving the mayor's conduct, government transparency, taxpayer-funded legal expenses, and a formal loss of confidence from a majority of the town's commissioners.

The Mooresville Board of Commissioners will be responsible for determining who fills the mayor's seat following Carney's departure.