Weeks after being indicted by a Cullman County Grand Jury on allegations of using his office for personal gain, Hanceville Mayor Kenneth Nail has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges against him.
Nail submitted his not guilty plea via a waived appearance at his Nov. 30 arraignment, signaling that he intends to defend himself against all 15 identical indictment counts of use of office for personal gain, a Class B felony. In Alabama, the penalty for conviction on any of the charges can range from two to 20 years, with each carrying a potential maximum fine of $30,000.
An attempt to reach Nail by phone ahead of deadline for this story Monday was not successful.
Nail was indicted on Nov. 1 on the 15 counts, the evidentiary substance of which was referred to the Cullman District Attorney’s Office earlier in the year by the Alabama Ethics Commission. The commission previously had declined to take administrative action against Nail after receiving a complaint that initially raised the allegations made in the subsequent indictment.
A retired Cullman police officer, Nail was first elected to the Hanceville mayor’s seat in 2008. He is currently serving his fourth consecutive term. Among other, similar allegations involving municipal jail inmates, the indictments accuse him of of instructing city employees — including former police chief Bob Long and former officer Josh Howell (who now serves as police chief) — to perform work at Nail’s residence for Nail’s personal benefit while each officer was on duty.
Nail’s case has been slated for jury trial on the April 15, 2024 trial docket before the Cullman County Circuit Court.