Braselton chief arrested, accused of using police cameras to stalk people

Braselton’s police chief abruptly resigned Wednesday, just hours before he was arrested on stalking and harassment charges, authorities said.

Michael Steffman, 49, was booked into the Jackson County jail following a monthslong investigation into allegations he repeatedly used data from police license plate readers to stalk people, the GBI said in a news release.

The agency said it was asked by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office to investigate the small-town chief, who had been with Braselton’s police department two decades.

“The investigation revealed that Steffman misused the automated license plate recognition systems to harass and stalk multiple individuals,” the GBI said.

Additional details about the case were not immediately made available. Steffman didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday, and didn’t yet have an attorney of record in his case. He has no disciplinary incidents on his official state law enforcement records.

Steffman, who lives in Braselton, is charged with violation of oath by a public officer, stalking, harassing communications and multiple counts of misusing automated license plate recognition systems, the GBI said. He was released on a $13,000 bond, records show.

In August, a Jefferson woman sought a temporary protective order against the chief, alleging in court documents that Steffman used license plate readers to track her whereabouts.

“He calls me from various phone numbers as well,” the woman wrote, adding that Steffman once followed her to a neighborhood and watched her go to a house and, in another incident, Gas South Arena.

That request for a restraining order was denied by a judge, who wrote that while the conduct was concerning, there was “no credible evidence” to support the stalking allegations. She was advised to file a report with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, court records show.

License plate readers are typically mounted on poles, streetlights and overpasses and the data collected is frequently used to track wanted suspects or stolen vehicles. But state law restricts what can be done with information collected from the high-speed cameras and how long that data can be stored if it isn’t being used for “law enforcement purposes.”

License plate readers are typically mounted on poles, streetlights, etc., and the data collected is often used to track wanted suspects or stolen vehicles. But state law restricts what can be done with information. (AJC File 2022)

The chief’s arrest on Wednesday came hours after Braselton officials announced his retirement and resignation in a Facebook post, saying Steffman was stepping down for “personal reasons.” He had been the department’s full-time chief since April and its interim chief since October 2024, when the prior leader retired.