Calls for Gov. Kemp to suspend Georgia sheriff charged with sexual battery
ATLANTA - A Georgia sheriff is accused of sexually assaulting a prominent judge. Supporters of Judge Glenda Hatchett want the governor to take action.
Bleckley County Sheriff Kristopher Coody was charged with sexual battery concerning the incident during an event at an Atlanta hotel earlier this year.
"A woman should not be sexually assaulted under any circumstances and especially not by law enforcement by a sheriff who we believe is supposed to protect," attorney CK. Hoffler said.
A coalition of legal, civil rights, and religious organizations joined Judge Glenda Hatchett's lawyers Wednesday in demanding Gov. Brian Kemp suspend Sheriff Coody.
The group read statements from Rev. Jesse Jackson and Ambassador Andrew Young in support of the dormer Fulton County chief judge.
Authorities charged Coody with sexual battery against Hatchett after he allegedly groped her during an event at the renaissance Atlanta Waverly hotel in January.
The Bleckley County sheriff is currently going through plea negotiations with the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office.
"She was sexually assaulted and harassed and there has been no justice so far," said Hoffler.
Judge Hatchett's supporters want him removed from office, as has occurred in other instances where sheriffs have been criminally charged. They insist this is not election-year politics and say Gov. Kemp should publicly denounce Sheriff Coody's actions.
"Have him come and say what happened was wrong and what happened should never have happened and that her life and her dignity matter," said attorney Muwali Davis, Judge Hatchett's legal counsel.
Kemp's office issued a written statement in response to the group's demands saying quote:
"Because the current charge is a misdemeanor and the incident happened at an off-duty location, the accusation has not yet risen to the level required by state law to take action. We will, however, most certainly continue to follow this situation closely and review any new information that comes to our attention."