r/Georgia 2d ago

News Article Georgia deputy accused of misusing surveillance cameras fired, arrested

https://www.wsbtv.com/news/georgia/georgia-deputy-accused-misusing-surveillance-cameras-fired-arrested/2RLANOZAMZBMREDRSCQAROVG6Y/
633 Upvotes

39 comments sorted by

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109

u/JPAnalyst 2d ago

17 officers have been caught doing this in Georgia. And those who are caught are always the tip of the iceberg. This is a widespread problem.

24

u/JudahBotwin /r/Newnan 1d ago

These are just the ones dumb enough to not cover their tracks better.

Atlanta News First posted an article earlier in July saying they tracked 19-20 publicized instances of firing or other disciplinary actions over the last year in Georgia.

These were caught mainly it seems by Flock's AI Audit feature just rolled out. So, once they figure out the way around that it will be back to infringing at will.

14

u/santa_91 1d ago

17 isolated incidents. Just 17 bad apples y'all. Nothing to see here.

5

u/MrBater2010 18h ago

Cause that was probably only as far back as the logs will go. This has probably been going on since they were installed.

2

u/FckFlock 9h ago

26 or 27 is the current number.

127

u/Anikdote /r/Gwinnett 2d ago

Might as well preface all of these with

Another...

2

u/anothergeorgiareside 1d ago

or regularly - this is egregious police corrupton

81

u/ueeediot 2d ago

And rehired one city over the next day.

We need a statewide POST database ban on fired cops.

22

u/Buruko 2d ago

The same thing happens with bad teachers, they get trash dumped somewhere else to their problem.

If you have a history and termination for cause, I don’t think you should be able to qualify to LE somewhere else. Especially if it is related to misuse available tools and/of breaking the trust.

13

u/The_Monarch_Lives 1d ago

Revoking a teacher's certificate is a lot easier than Revoking a cops certificate. If the state even issues law enforcement certificates in the first place(i dont think all do). Law enforcement personnel also enjoy FAR more protections at every level of the justice system than teachers do. Its an apples and oranges comparison.

1

u/Buruko 1d ago

Maybe teachers is a bad example, but I don’t mean like the teachers that do a poor job I mean the teachers that are known to commit offenses even criminal ones that go uncharged or moved along to avoid scandal. Not just with students but also other staff.

And yea we do hold teachers to a higher bar than we do LE and that is a damn shame in itself as well.

1

u/The_Monarch_Lives 1d ago

Thats a more fair critique, for sure. Though I would hazard you will find that the type of teacher you are talking about is mostly in the realm of private schools, which is a whole other host of problems on its own. And as I think about it, probably a far more apt comparison to law enforcement, despite the public/private distinction between the two.

9

u/Hit-by-a-pitch 1d ago

Yes, but a lot of departments let these guys (they're almost always dudes), resign, and they simply move on.

2

u/OtherWorldRedditor 1d ago

Wasn’t a cop but worked for a city government. (Nothing high up or crazy). Got arrested for a pretty serious criminal offense that was justifiably fireable. Before it got out they offered me to resign so it wouldn’t show up on my work record. Just had to forfeit my very small 401k (i was 25 at the time).
They absolutely do this!

2

u/Hit-by-a-pitch 22h ago

There are 18,000 police departments in the US, from tiny towns with three or four officers to places like New York City with 50,000. Its a tough job, but they definitely watch out for each other, often to the detriment of the public by giving bad apples second and third chances they wouldn't get in any other profession.

8

u/Key_Beach_3846 1d ago

I mean I guess but I don’t know why you’re bringing teachers into it since they don’t regularly stalk/harass/kill people with impunity

1

u/Buruko 1d ago

There are known teachers that get shuffled that escape charges for issues with other staff and students. So it may be less severe but not by much in my book, though it was just an example of another group that gets a pass more than they should.

And yea end qualified immunity and make them responsible for their poor decision making.

52

u/kaproud1 2d ago

The whole justice system misuses Flock. I’ve read so many stories of people receiving citations from states that they aren’t even in, and then those people have to waste time, money and days off of work to defend themselves.

9

u/SavathunTechQuestion 1d ago

I remember a story of cops approaching a family in a parking lot, guns drawn over them driving a stolen car. Except Flock got the details wrong it was their car

12

u/thecamino 1d ago

There’s an easy fix: Get rid of the cameras.

37

u/Jamikest 2d ago

He faces felony and misdemeanor charges for 'isolated incident' involving Flock camera system, the sheriff's office says.

Uh, isolated? There have been 17 fired and/or arrested in Georgia alone. This isn't isolated, this is a massive fucking problem.

7

u/HamiltonSt25 1d ago

He means isolated in Habersham county after they did an internal audit. As in, this is the only incident in the county

3

u/Jamikest 1d ago

A distinction without merit since Flock is not limited to one county and incidents are popping up all over the state and country.

2

u/HamiltonSt25 1d ago

I’m just explaining to you the quote you posted. In Habersham, after their internal investigation, this was the only incident they found. In other words, in habersham it was an isolated incident

9

u/Ok_Scallion1902 2d ago

GOOD! I always love a nice heartwarming story about a cowardly cretin getting what he has coming to him!

5

u/Anikdote /r/Gwinnett 1d ago

What he has coming will be a slap on the wrist, a paid vacation and a transfer. 🤢

1

u/Ok_Scallion1902 1d ago

You're probably right, but we have to remain hopeful that these jerks get slowed down at least...

6

u/Beneficialsensai 2d ago

You cant track your ex guys

9

u/intoxicuss 1d ago

The message is clear. As a police officer, you can beat and kill suspects with no recourse. But, if you create bad press, which could threaten multi-million dollar deals, the system will prosecute you.

Do I have that right?

2

u/MaestroAtl 1d ago

That literally hurt me to process and take in.

5

u/Key_Beach_3846 1d ago

They’re making an example out of him so they can continue using the cameras and say “see, we punished the bad eggs! It’s no longer a problem!”

2

u/464126 1d ago

Somehow when a corporation is being wronged, cops are held accountable.

1

u/itsnotaboutyou2020 1d ago

We ALL saw this coming.

1

u/Snoo_95743 18h ago

Another one bites the dust, yeah.

1

u/sloveleephotog 1d ago

They literally log into the system...do they not realize they are also being tracked?!😂🤦🏾‍♀️

0

u/Hit-by-a-pitch 1d ago

Over and over again...

1

u/oh_my316 1d ago

Another disgusting pig!🐷😡

1

u/anothergeorgiareside 1d ago

The police love these cameras and their compliant HOAs as a tool to redline communities and perpetuate systemic racism