Beaufort official has resigned less than a year into the job. What we know
One of Beaufort’s top officials has resigned.
John “JJ” Sauve will step down at the end of October, less than a year after he was named the city’s Deputy City Manager in January. He had previously served as the city’s Assistant City Manager.
Sauve cited personal reasons for his departure. He is doing so “in support of his family and his wife’s business and to return to private law practice in North Carolina,” according to a Tuesday press release from the city. The city noted Sauve’s contributions during his 20-month tenure, from the launch of a housing repair assistance program to the rollout of a public portal for capital projects.
The resignation comes weeks after the city released thousands of documents, many of which contained “very sensitive” information about city business and employees, to the public through a records request.
Sauve’s resignation is not related to the document release, said Beaufort City Manager Scott Marshall.
“It’s coincidental,” he said. “But coincidence is not causal.”
Sauve confirmed later that his decision to resign was unrelated to city matters.
“This is something I have been discussing with Scott over the past few months and is not related to any specific issues in the City,” Sauve wrote in an email. “If anything, the FOIA matter actually delayed my decision because I wanted to be sure the outside investigation we all requested was in place and I would be able to provide full support for its completion before I left.”
Document release issue
The city’s document release took place after a local couple, Kiel and Autumn Hollis, submitted a Freedom of Information Act request seeking information about how the city’s police handled the search for their 12-year-old daughter in February.
Their request yielded much more information than the couple anticipated — nearly 9,000 pages worth. The documents, many of which did not have to do with their request, included private details such as social security numbers, sensitive law enforcement investigative material and privileged legal correspondence between the city and its attorneys.
Sauve was leading the city’s internal investigation into the document release to figure out what was released, who was affected and how it happened, according to previous reporting by The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette. He will continue those duties until his final day, Marshall said. The FOIA officer reports to the Deputy City Manager, he said.
The city has since decided to hire an independent law firm to review how the incident happened.
A previous version of this story stated that Sauve did not immediately respond to calls before publication. The calls were errantly made to a number not associated with Sauve. The Island Packet received a written statement from Sauve following publication, which is now, in part, stated in the story.
This story was originally published September 2, 2025 at 4:38 PM.
