Nashville Mayor Megan Barry professionally recommended the daughter of her former bodyguard she admitted to having extramarital affair with, a bombshell new report has revealed.
Barry, who opened up last week about the relationship with her former head of security detail, Sgt Robert Forrest, helped land Forrest’s fresh-out-of-law school daughter, Macy Amos, 26, an entry-level attorney job according to The Tennessean.
The Belmont University College of Law graduate was the sole candidate for the ‘first newly created job in Nashville’s legal department in two years.’
In an email statement to the newspaper, Metro Law Department Director Jon Cooper confirmed Barry sent the recommendation.
Nashville Mayor Megan Barry (pictured right) recommended her bodyguard turned lover Sgt Robert Forrest’s daughter Macy Amos, 26 (shown left) an entry-level city attorney job. Ameos landed the job in January 2016
‘The mayor did recommend Macy during a meeting I had with her at some point, as did a number of people in the legal community,’ he said in the email.
However, Cooper said the ultimate decision was not up to Barry to make – but himself.
Barry admitted to an affair with Sgt Robert Forrest (pictured), which started several months after she came into her administration. The affair was discovered through talks between their two spouses and other personal conversations
He made the decision to hire the young graduate, who had previous experience interning with former mayors, citing Ames to be the ‘logical choice’ for the position she landed in January 2016.
Last Wednesday, Barry issued a formal apology and said she plans to continue serving in office amid the scandal.
In a news release and press conference, the mayor said she accepts full responsibility for the pain she caused her family and the family of Forrest, her former security chief.
She apologized to her husband, Bruce, whom she said remains committed to their marriage.
Barry also apologized to the people of Nashville, adding that she remains firmly committed to working hard to serve them.
The popular mayor, who was elected in 2015, said progress has been made to offer affordable housing, improve to public education and promote better transportation options, but there’s more work to be done.
Barry delivered a shock press conference last Wednesday (left and right) in which she admitted to having an extramarital affair with Forrest just hours after he announced in his retirement
She stood alone in front of TV cameras as she explained herself to reporters for about 15 minutes on Wednesday night, telling them she’s embarrassed, sad and sorry for all the pain she has caused.
She continued on to assure that nothing illegal happened and no policies were violated.
Her office released records of her text messages, calendar and travel expenses and records, and Barry said she will be transparent in cooperating with possible investigations.
‘I know that God will forgive me, but that Nashville doesn’t have to,’ Barry said during the news conference.
‘And I hope that I can earn their trust and I can earn your trust back, and that you will forgive me.’
Barry (left) also apologized to her husband, Bruce (right), whom she said remains committed to their marriage
Forrest, pictured with wife Penny, said in a statement the affair ’caused great pain’ for his family
The first-term mayor’s admission follows the painful loss of the Barrys’ only son, Max, in July after an overdose on a combination of several drugs, including two opioids.
‘This is a very bad day. And I’m going to have several more bad days. But this is not my worst day,’ Barry said.
‘I will tell you I know the difference between a mistake, I made a serious mistake, but this is not a tragedy.’
She said the affair started several months after she came into her administration and the relationship was discovered through conversations between their two spouses and personal chatter.
She would not say when the affair ended, only saying that it is now over.
She accumulated more than $33,000 in travel expenses combined between her and Forrest from January 2017 to late October 2017, and said all of the trips were ‘business-related’.
Barry (pictured, August 2017) would not reveal when the affair ended, just that it was over
Forrest said on January 17 that he would retire Wednesday after 31-plus years with Metro Nashville Police.
He spent 14 years of that tenure supervising the mayor’s security detail over three administrations.
In a separate news release on Wednesday, Forrest said he never violated his oath as a police officer or engaged in actions that would abuse the public trust.
The retired officer asked for privacy as he seeks to rebuild the trust of those he loves the most.
‘I deeply regret that my professional relationship with Mayor Barry turned into a personal one,’ Forrest said in the release.
‘This has caused great pain for my wife, my family, friends and colleagues.’
She accumulated more than $33,000 in travel expenses combined between her and Forrest (pictured) from January 2017 to late October 2017, and said all of the trips were business-related