How can I stop password requirement when exiting screen saver (or waking displays) in Mojave (10.14)

I just upgraded to a newer (2018 i7) mini from my old one (2012 i7) that was running High Sierra, until I updated it to Mojave to migrate my primary user. Since I learned to step through OS upgrades, I'm using Mojave on the new mini, before I consider moving farther up the OS chain.

Setting up the newer mini - Wipe the hard drive and do a fresh install of Mojave. The only account set up is the System Admin account. Started installing the applications I typically use.

Setting up the older mini - Update from High Sierra to Mojave. Make sure everything is fine and that Time Machine is current.

Migration - Migrated my user from Time Machine, and set up some odds and ends that needed to be taken care of post migration.

Desired behavior - Slap the space bar when the screen is off, or in screen saver, and the computer is usable without logging back in.

Problem - Screen locks when waking from the screen saver or the screens from sleep. This is not the behavior I expect. Research shows to disable 'Require password (options) after sleep or screen saver begins' in the Security and Privacy/General tab. Even when disabled, it's continues to require the password after slapping the space bar.

On occasions when I wake the screen, I can mouse and drag things but I can't type anything, because I'm actually on the Lock Screen which is capturing all of the keystrokes.

Is there another setting I need to set/un-set somewhere?

I've also gone and watched which preference files get changed when I change the setting, but nothing that I've watched has any setting for password unlocking.

I've also created another Admin user to test and it's also malfunctioning.