GBI looks at DeKalb judge, ex-investigator

By Megan Matteucci

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Authorities are investigating the DeKalb County State Court on allegations an investigator and a judge illegally ran tags through the state’s criminal information system.

Now the investigator has been fired, and a judge is under investigation, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has learned.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation declined to identify the individuals, but confirmed they had received a complaint.

“The GBI is conducting a preliminary review into alleged improper use of GCIC terminals involving the office of a State Court judge in DeKalb County,” GBI spokesman John Bankhead told the AJC. “A preliminary review is conducted to determine if there is probable cause to open a full investigation into the allegations.”

A spokeswoman for the DeKalb County solicitor general said an investigator was terminated Monday as part of an ongoing investigation. She said she could not comment on why he was terminated or release any other information.

The GBI operates the Georgia Crime Information Center, which includes criminal histories, arrests, fingerprints, driving records and other information. Police officers must be certified to access information on the GCIC.

Officers must have probable cause to access information in the GCIC. Anyone who violates that could face criminal prosecution and lose their certification, Bankhead said.

Officers also could lose their police certification.

The Georgia Peace Officers Standards and Training Council, which certifies all police officers in the state, said an investigator could lose his certification if there are GCIC problems.

“If the officer were arrested or terminated from the agency as a result of this incident, POST would take a look at it,” POST director Ryan Powell said.