Amid a disagreement with Attorney General Steve Marshall over what Marshall said was his failure to enforce the state’s gambling laws, Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway said Friday that it’s not his job to “hunt down” electronic bingo operators, pointing out he’s more focused on stopping serious crimes like human trafficking and gun violence.

Pettway hit back at Marshall in a strongly worded letter Friday, saying he was “disappointed in the way some of our elected officials have conducted themselves” and accusing the attorney general of being “strangely silent when it comes to the violent crimes and poverty in the county.”

The sheriff was responding to a March 13 letter from Marshall earlier this month where the attorney general reminded Pettway of his enforcement role as sheriff. In that letter, Marshall requested Pettway advise him, Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Carr and Bessemer Cutoff District Attorney Lynneice Washington if he learns of any electronic bingo halls opening or planning to open in the county.

Washington sent cease and desist letters to two bingo halls – Super Highway Bingo on Bessemer Superhighway and Fun-N-Games in Brighton – on the grounds that the businesses are operating illegally. And on Friday, Graysville Mayor Julio Davis said four people applied for electronic bingo licenses in his city after the city council passed an ordinance, adding that one hall was in operation and another is set to open on Monday.

While Pettway said Friday he would assist any mayors or police chiefs who find illegal bingo taking place in their cities, he pointed out that the crime is a misdemeanor and that his office would bear the costs of transporting and storing bingo equipment, which he estimated cost the office “tens of thousands of dollars” in the last decade.

“From where I sit every day in my office in Birmingham, Alabama, I have a different view than Attorney General Steve Marshall and I am forced to deal with a different reality. There is a great deal of violence and crime that affects the quality of life of the citizens of Jefferson County. There are multiple cities in the county that are on the verge of becoming insolvent. These are things that I do not have the luxury to simply ignore,” the sheriff wrote. “Attorney General Steve Marshall has been strangely silent when it comes to the violent crimes and poverty in the county. I would like to see the same energy from Mr. Marshall when it comes to human trafficking, domestic violence, bullying, and gun violence. Honestly, I wish things were different and I had as much time to focus on misdemeanor crimes as the attorney general appears to have.”