The district says it “has the authority to decide when the sheriff’s office can access video” (WLOS, 2021). No board vote, minutes entry, or public discussion of the 2021 Fusus memorandum has surfaced since it was signed, and none of the seven current members has said anything public about it (Buncombe County). Board races became nonpartisan in 2026 under HB 66.
The board
| District | Seated | 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rob Elliot (James Robertson Elliot III), chair | 3 (Reynolds) | Dec 2022 | On the ballot, unopposed |
| Amy Churchill, vice chair | 4 | Dec 2024 | |
| Ann Franklin | 1 | Dec 2024 (former chair) | |
| Greg Cheatham | 2 | Dec 2024 | |
| Rev. Charles Martin | at large | Dec 2024 | |
| Judy S. Lewis | 5 (Enka) | Dec 2022 | On the ballot vs Alina Moiseyev (Candler realtor) |
| Kim Plemmons | 6 (Erwin) | Dec 2022 | On the ballot vs Taras Shevchenko (Leicester) |
Elliot, Lewis, and Plemmons were all seated after the MOU was signed; none of the three incumbents, and neither challenger, has a findable position on the cameras, SROs, or ICE access to school video (as of Aug 22, 2026). (Buncombe County BOE candidate list · Mountain Xpress)
Superintendent Rob Jackson retires September 1, 2026; the board picks his successor.
What the log shows. The Sheriff’s Office’s own Fusus audit log, released in May 2026, records 65,678 live views of school cameras across 51 sites between January 2024 and May 2026, and 942 recorded views: watching, not pulling footage after incidents. A.C. Reynolds High was viewed live 7,389 times; T.C. Roberson 7,108; Erwin High 6,958; Erwin Middle 5,788; Cane Creek Middle 5,457. Asheville City Schools: 3,013 live views, one recorded (The Sheriff’s Audit Log).
The question for all of them
Would you put the 2021 memorandum on an agenda, read it into the record, vote on it, and publish the audit trail the district says exists? (What the Law Lets the County Do · request 9)
Asheville City Schools
A separate district with a separate arrangement: WLOS reports APD’s planned RTIC “already uses camera footage from systems operated by partners such as Asheville City Schools,” while the city’s 2023 interlocal agreement with the county explicitly excluded Buncombe County Schools’ cameras (Mountain Xpress, Jan 2023). Superintendent Maggie Fehrman (since 2023) and the elected board, chaired by Sarah Thornburg with Rebecca Strimer as vice chair, have no findable public statement on sharing school video with APD; six candidates, including Thornburg, Strimer, and Liza English-Kelly, are on the November ballot for ACS seats (ACS board).
Region: Buncombe County · Last updated: Aug 22, 2026