North Carolina Sheriff Retires Amid Sexual Misconduct Charges

BRYSON CITY, N.C. (AP) — The longtime sheriff of a western North Carolina county whom some women accused of sexual misconduct has quit before he could be permanently removed.

Curtis Cochran, who was first elected Swain County sheriff in 2006, retired from the post effective July 1, according to a statement from the county Board of Commissioners. The chief deputy is performing the sheriff’s duties while the commissioners decide who will serve out the remainder of Cochran’s four-year term through late 2026, the statement said.

Cochran, 72, was charged in state courts with felonious restraint and misdemeanor sexual battery, soliciting prostitution and assault on a female, according to June 27 arrest warrants. The same day,…