Former interim fire chief convicted of leaving the scene of 2020 traffic death

    Alabama (WCOV) -- Selma’s former interim fire chief was convicted of a class-C felony relating to a 2020 traffic death in Jefferson County.

Franklin Nelson Edwards was convicted March 14 of leaving the scene of an accident involving a death or injury in a jury trial at the Bessemer Cutoff Courthouse. He was acquitted of a charge of manslaughter in the death of Matthew Scott Sartin in an accident in June 2020, according to court records.

A class-C felony carries a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $15,000 fine. Sentencing is set for April 7, according to court records. Lynneice O. Washington, district attorney for the Bessemer Cutoff, said that her staff plans to ask for prison time, but the sentence is up to the judge.

News reports say that Sartin, 22, of Pineville, Louisiana, died when his motorcycle was hit on Interstate 59. An abandoned car was found about two miles away. That car was later determined to belong to Edwards.

In an unrelated case, Edwards was arrested July 26, 2024 and charged with first degree theft of property, according to the Alabama State Fire Marshal's Office. Edwards was taken into custody by Alabama State Fire Marshall's Office deputies with assistance from the Dallas County Sheriff's Office.

Edwards served as Selma’s interim fire chief for several months in 2024. In May 2024 the Selma City Council voted to replace Edwards with Coley Byrd, a fire investigator with more than 20 years of service with the Selma Fire Department. Byrd has announced that he will retire at the end of this month.

Selma Mayor James Perkins Jr. said at the time that the Selma City Council violated Edwards’ rights as an employee and breached professional ethics when they removed him as interim chief.

The City Council has the power to appoint the police chief, fire chief, city treasurer and tax collector.