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The following was taken from a press release distributed by the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office on June 21, 2024:
OCONEE COUNTY, Ga. – The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) terminated a jailer on June 19, 2024, following an internal review of an incident involving use of force that occurred on May 31, 2024.
The internal review concluded the now former jailer was unjustified using a taser during an encounter with an inmate. The internal investigation did not find the jailer acted with any malintent, but the actions were not objectively reasonable, did not follow policy, and were not in accordance with taser training.
“OCSO holds all employees to the highest standards, particularly regarding use of force procedures,” said Sheriff James A. Hale Jr. “We take all use of force incidents very seriously, conducting thorough internal reviews to ensure our policies and the law are upheld. When I was notified of the results of this incident, I immediately terminated the employee and contacted the GBI (Georgia Bureau of Investigations) to initiate a separate investigation.”
This is an open investigation, and no further details are available at this time. All further inquiries regarding the incident should be directed to the GBI Region 11 Field Office.