Homosexual "dads" charged with CSAM/grooming/rape | Harnett jail officers charged with assault | Prosecutors stretched thin in Durham, Wake
No. 175 — May 3-May 9, 2026
We have two Harnett County stories this week: three detention officers at the county jail have been fired and charged criminally in relation to a prisoner being unjustifiably sprayed and beaten.
A “married” homosexual in Erwin is facing charges related to rape and child pornography involving multiple underage male victims as young as five, at least one of whom appears to have been the couple’s “son.”
The incoming Wake DA is proposing local funding for more prosecutorial resources; data shows that the prosecutorial districts of Wake and Durham are 3rd and 1st respectively across the state in terms of crimes per assistant district attorney.
Wake County has postponed a rubber stamp vote on a “merger” between WakeMed and Atrium Health after pushback from the public, as well as local and state officials from both parties.
Harnett homosexual “dads” charged with child pornography/grooming/rape involving “son(s)”
Two Harnett County men arrested on child sex crimes - WRAL
2 arrested in Harnett County on child sex crime charges after sheriff’s office gets NCSBI cybertips - CBS17
Cape Fear Valley worker, spouse accused in sex crimes against children - ABC11
Harnett Detectives Arrest Two Men Following NC SBI Cybertip Investigation - JoCo Report
A child pornography investigation into a homosexual couple in Harnett County has resulted in charges for grooming and making sexual content of a 15-year-old boy, and raping a 5-year-old.
According to a search warrant executed last week, the Harnett County Sheriff’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received a tip in March by way of the NC State Bureau of Investigation implicating Joshua Lee Gilliam aka Josh Gilliam-Lynch, 39, of Erwin, in regards to two videos of prepubescent boys being raped which had been uploaded to Snapchat. The ICAC task force had previously received a tip in May 2025 with Gilliam’s “husband” Ronald Wayne Lynch, 39, identified as the suspect, though the document does not specify why no charges were filed.
The investigation by the HCSO resulted in charges for the pair as creators of child sexual abuse material, not merely its possession and distribution. Gilliam has been accused of using, inducing, encouraging, or facilitating the creation of CSAM involving a 15-year-old male victim, while Lynch is accused of actually taking the images for “pecuniary gain.”
Gilliam is also accused of sexually abusing another victim, aged six years old.
A Facebook profile associated with Gilliam confirms that the pair is a “married” homosexual couple who “have 5 boys,” whom they have involved in LGBTQ activism.
Gilliam is being held in jail under a $1 million secured bond, facing one count each of first degree sexual exploitation of a minor, first degree statutory sexual offense, and taking indecent liberties with a child.
Lynch is being held in jail under a $360,000 secured bond, facing two counts of first degree sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of second degree sexual exploitation of a minor.
Do our largest counties suffer from a dearth of prosecutors?
Incoming Wake DA asks county for $600K for more prosecutors, mental health court - N&O
In an election year where law and order weighs heavy on the minds of North Carolinians, are there any public safety measures that can be agreed on by both sides of the political aisle?
Although incoming Wake District Attorney Wiley Nickel has promised left-wing priorities such as deprioritizing marijuana crimes and prosecuting immigration officials, he is also proposing an increase in staffing and funding at the DA’s office to help manage the high caseload and improve the swiftness of justice.
The prosecutorial districts may be drawn along county lines and the district attorney election may happen locally, but the allocation of full-time assistant district attorneys is set by the state, ranging from 6 ADAs in Montgomery and Stanly counties to 71 in Mecklenburg County, which was recently increased in response to the murder of Iryna Zarutska.
However, the distribution of these ADA positions by the state is inconsistent, with a large variance in the concentration of ADAs in comparison to either crime or population.
For instance, although Wake has a slight margin as the state’s largest county, it only has 44 ADA positions allocated compared to 71 in Mecklenburg. In fact, the Wake district has the fewest ADAs compared to its population, with only 3.56 per 100k residents. On the other end of the scale, Prosecutorial District 21 (Anson, Richmond, & Scotland) has 11.34 ADAs per 100k.
It is perhaps more fair to judge the allocation of prosecutorial resources according to the crime rates in the respective districts, as a district with more criminals would surely need more prosecutors than a district with few criminals.
Going off of the “index offenses” reported by the State Bureau of Investigation, the variance in distribution is even more pronounced, with 96.38 index offenses per ADA position in Prosecutorial District 35 (Avery, Madison, Mitchell, Watauga, & Yancey) compared to 760.61 in the Durham district.
Mecklenburg comes second with the recent addition of 10 ADA positions, for a rate of 678.45 index offenses per ADA, Wake comes in third with 591.52, and Prosecutorial District 18 (Chatham & Orange) comes in eighth with 431.20. (The best staffed district in the Triangle, by this metric, is Johnston with 238.10 index offenses per ADA).
Under Nickel’s proposal, Wake County would chip in $603,000 for 5 ADAs and a mental health court, Raleigh would contribute $168,826 for two ADAs and two legal assistants, and Cary and Apex would each contribute $84,413 for one ADA and one legal assistant.
Wake County postpones vote on WakeMed merger after public backlash
Atrium poised to take over WakeMed in Triangle healthcare shakeup - WUNC
WakeMed is seeking a combination with Atrium Health, the state’s largest hospital network - Axios
State, local officials, lawmakers press for delay on WakeMed/Atrium deal - NC Health News
What to know about WakeMed’s deal with Atrium as NC officials raise alarms - WRAL
Wake County Board of Commissioners has delayed a vote in which it was expected to approve the transfer of the WakeMed hospital system to Atrium Health as part of its “consent agenda” without public input.
The vote was delayed after negative response, including from a number of state officials such as State Treasurer Brad Briner (R), State Auditor Dave Boliek (R), Rep. Erin Paré (R), Rep. Mike Schietzelt (R), Rep. Sarah Crawford (D), Sen. Jay Chaudhuri (D), and Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell (D).
WakeMed was originally founded by the county as a public hospital in 1955 before becoming a private non-profit organization in 1997, with the county still retaining certain control.
Although proponents of the deal tout a greater access to capital and resources as part of a larger system, skeptics see it as giving away a public asset, which could result in higher prices for no benefit.
Harnett County detention officers charged over assaulting inmate
3 ex-Harnett County jail officers arrested after inmate assaulted twice, NCSBI investigating - CBS17
3 Harnett detention officers accused of assault, using pepper spray on inmate - WRAL
3 former Harnett County detention officers facing charges - ABC11
SBI: Incidents at Harnett County Jail Lead to Arrest of Three Former Officers - JoCo Report
Press Release - NC SBI
A total of three detention officers have been fired from the Harnett County Sheriff’s Office and face charges relating to an inmate assaulted by officers on at least two occasions in December at the county jail.
According to the charging documents, Adam Russell Isbell, 39, used OC spray on the inmate and punched him repeatedly on December 27, while Joseph Austin Collins, 28, is accused of striking the inmate in the head with an OC cannister in the decontamination room at the jail three days later. In addition, Lenora Guerrant Dawson, 60, has been charged with enabling the second assault as the on-duty supervisor.
The incidents were reported several days later; an internal investigation by the HCSO found that the officers had violated jail use of force policies, leading to their termination, while an independent investigation by the NC State Bureau of Investigation resulted in charges of assault and battery for Isbell and Collins, and a charge of injury to prisoner by jailer for Dawson. (1, 2, 3)
The three have each been released on bonds ranging between $2,000-$5,000.
