Mayor Megan Barry, 100 days into her term, had high praise for the police bodyguard with whom she has now admitted having a two-year affair.
That praise was delivered in a January 2016 email sent to Sgt. Rob Forrest's supervisor to be included in the personnel evaluations for him and other members of his security team.
Forrest, she wrote, "is a consummate professional in his dealings with me and with my staff."
"From the first day he collected me to take me to the swearing in [and} to the many events and functions I have participated in since, his deep knowledge of Nashville has been essential to my overall success," Barry continued in her email to Capt. Mike Alexander.
She added, "His leadership of the overall detail is also critical. His team works like a well-oiled machine and since much of my day includes transport between locations, arriving on time and in the right place, his careful oversight of the team is essential."
Special Section:
City Hall Scandal
The email was obtained by NewsChannel 5 Investigates through a public records request.
It is not clear when Barry began her affair with Forrest.
Barry first told NewsChannel 5 that it was "shortly after I came into the Mayor's Office," which was September 2015.
She told The Tennessean that it was in the spring of 2016.
