DOUGLAS COUNTY, Ga. — It's been nearly a month since Phil Miller stepped into his new role, and the former sheriff aims to lead the Douglas County Commission through turbulent times.
Miller was appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp to serve as the commission's chairman in late May after two commissioners were among those indicted in an alleged bid rigging scheme earlier this year.
Miller replaced the suspended Romona Jackson Jones. Former U.S. Naval Academy football star Ricky Dobbs Jr. was tapped to fill Henry Mitchell III's seat.
Miller's appointment poses a problem for some residents in the metro Atlanta county. Miller is a Republican, and Douglas is blue. President Joe Biden carried the county with nearly 62% of the vote in 2020.
The appointment has drawn the ire and questions of residents, including the West Metro Atlanta NAACP and the Douglas County Democratic Committee.
But Miller's primary concern is restoring the county's credibility in the wake of several scandals, including the GBI investigation into the alleged misuse of county purchasing cards.
"I just want a government that's honest and transparent and works for the people of this county," he said.
Miller's Douglas County roots and his appointment
Miller, who turned 71 this month, was raised in Hannah and Fairplay communities in the southern part of the county, and law enforcement was the family business.
Phil's father, Thad, was Douglasville's police chief throughout much of the 1970s. Phil Miller joined the city's police force in 1971, eventually becoming the agency's first plain-clothes detective.
In 1976, Miller made the jump to the sheriff's office and rose through the ranks. He was elected sheriff in 2001 and served until he retired in 2016.
"There's five generations of us that I know of that were born and raised in Douglas County," Miller said. "Everything I do is in Douglas County, and that's not going to change. I was born here, and I think I'll die here — Lord willing."
A local Democrat and multiple Republican state lawmakers were among the first to contact Miller about the commission appointment, he told 11Alive in an interview earlier this month. Miller got the final appointment call from Kemp while the former sheriff traveling back from Colorado in mid-May.
"I don't need a job. I don't need the money," Miller said. "I'm here because the governor asked me to, and five other elected officials asked me to, including some Democrats."
Miller said he has several priorities for his new role. He aims to lower taxes after multiple years of increases. He also wants to ensure the county's elected officials are transparent.
"We need to show people that we realize that it's their money and not ours and that we're caretakers of it," he said. "We're going to do the right thing with it."
The backlash and Miller's response
In the weeks that followed, those opposed to Miller's appointment began to speak out.
In a May 31 letter sent to Kemp, West Metro NAACP branch President Joy Ponder Bates blasted the appointment, alleging that Miller "has a questionable relationship with the Black community at best."
"Your appointment of Phil Miller suggests a failure to acknowledge the systemic challenges and historical disparities faced by people of color," a portion of the letter reads. "It undermines the progress made in Douglas County for the pursuit of racial equality and casts doubt on your commitment to the will of the people, diversity, inclusion, and fairness."
Robin Zuniga-Ortega, the chair of the Douglas County Democratic Committee, said she and others have concerns with Kemp's appointment of both Miller and Dobbs.
Both organizations wanted commissioner Tarenia Carthan to assume the chairperson role.
"Douglas County is now one of the most diverse counties in the state," Zuniga-Ortega said. "It's not the county that Phil Miller left. It's changed. It has a very different character. ...He doesn't really represent the citizens of Douglas County."
Among the issues Zuniga-Ortega mentioned was a 2014 incident when two teens were left in a holding cell over the weekend without food or toilet paper. Miller said in a press conference at the time that courthouse security didn't do its job.
Ortega said the county party submitted a list of potential commission candidates to the governor's office earlier this year but never heard back.
Bates and Zuniga-Ortega said they have not heard back from Kemp regarding their issues with Miller's appointment.
"It is our hope that it is not the Governor's intention to ignore West Metro's concerns by failing to respond," Bates said.
When asked about the criticism of his appointment, Miller denied that he had a bad reputation.
"If they find somebody that I mistreated because of the color of their skin, I'd for us to talk about it," he said. "Give that information to (11Alive). Let's make it public, because I just didn't do it. I tried to treat everybody fair all my life."
Miller pointed to his electoral record as proof of his reputation in the county. In the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections, Barack Obama narrowly carried Douglas County. In those years, Miller also won re-election.
"It wasn't just Republicans voting for me. There were some Democrats. Those were people who knew who I was," he said. "My reputation speaks for itself, and they can't change that. They can tell lies about it, but they can't change it. It is what it is."
What's next for Miller and Douglas County?
Part of restoring the county's credibility is to make sure residents trust public officials in the wake of alleged purchasing card misuse, Miller said.
"They need to feel comfortable that if they give us a credit card ... that we're going to do (the) right thing," he said.
11Alive reported last week that the GBI is overseeing the investigation.
The Douglas County Sheriff's Office requested that the GBI conduct a criminal investigation on May 18. Douglas County Superior Court Chief Judge William McClain also requested that the state agency investigate allegations of purchasing card misuse in a May 25 letter, the GBI said.
The county suspended cards for all county government employees, managers, administrators, and county commissioners since May 1. The initial suspension was supposed to last 100 days, but the investigation will likely extend this timeline.
Douglas County's administration oversees purchasing card usage for the county commission and the county's 1,200-person workforce. It has no authority over purchasing card usage by the sheriff, the tax commissioner, the county's judges, and other constitutional officers.
The program allows certain county employees to make business-related expenses. The cards are not for personal use.
"The GBI criminal investigation is just beginning," GBI spokesperson Nelly Miles previously said in a statement. "GBI has no timeframe on completion of the criminal investigation."
Miller said he thinks most of those who have access used the purchasing cards properly.
"I don't think the P-Card is going to be a big deal as some people think it is," he said. "I think it's very few people that have abused the system. I'm sure they'll be dealt with appropriately."
Miller will remain on the commission until the case against former chairman Jackson-Jones is resolved or the term of office expires in late 2024 — whichever comes first.
Miller said he hopes Jackson-Jones and Mitchell are cleared of any wrongdoing related to the alleged bid-rigging.
"Both of the commissioners that have been indicted are my friends," he said. "I hope and pray that this is all a mistake, and they are exonerated."
Regardless of what happens, Miller said he'll only serve through the end of the term.
"You couldn't melt me or pour me into this job," he said.