The task force involved in the botched drug raid that left a toddler disfigured is being disbanded, just as a Habersham County grand jury is deciding whether some of its members should face criminal charges.
Controversy has followed the Mountain Judicial Circuit Narcotics Criminal Investigation and Suppression Team since its role in the 2009 fatal shooting of a pastor who inadvertently stepped into the middle of an undercover drug operation. A civil jury awarded the widow of Jonathan Ayers more than $2 million.
In the case involving 19-month-old Bounkham “Bou Bou” Phonesavanh, whose nose was detatched from his face after a stun grenade landed in his playpen, the NCIS team supplied the intelligence used by the Habersham SWAT team that conducted the May raid. According to an incident report obtained from the Habersham sheriff’s office, deputies were told to anticipate a cache of weapons and armed guards at the home.
A search inside turned up neither guns nor drugs. Wanis Thonetheva, who didn’t even live at the home, was arrested later that day without incident and charged only with possession of methamphetamine.
“It’s interesting that it would happen now,” said Mawuli Davis, the attorney representing the Phonesavanhs. “It’s too early to tell where this is going. It’s a very odd announcement with some very odd timing.”
The decision was announced Tuesday afternoon in a press release. Narcotics investigations in Rabun, Habersham and Stephens counties will now be conducted by the Appalachian Drug Task Force, which currently oversees White, Banks, Lumpkin and Towns counties.
One big change, according to the press release: The GBI is now responsible for supervising and training the newly expanded task force. Agency spokeswoman Sherry Lang declined comment.
Training has been an ongoing issue for the Mountain NCIS unit. Attorneys representing Abigail Ayers discovered that the supervisor of sheriff’s deputy Billy Shane Harrison, who shot the pastor, had falsified his training records.
And the Habersham SWAT team, acting as the unit’s proxy in the May raid, appeared not to follow basic procedures for deploying the flash bang devices.
“On initial glance into the room, the lights were off and there was nothing immediately visible in the entry way, ” said the deputy in the incident report.
It landed on Bou Bou’s pillow.
Steve Ijames, who teaches law enforcement on how to properly use the devices, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution training dictates visual clearance of a room before deployment.
“If it’s dark, you might require illumination, ” Ijames said. “These are not mini-firecrackers. You have to assess whether the risk outweighs the damage that can occur if there’s intimate contact.”
Meanwhile, the grand jury continues to hear evidence from Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney Brian Rickman. It’s unclear whether jurors will be told about the NCIS team’s disbandment and, if so, how that might impact their decision on whether to indict.
“It’s entirely under the realm of possibility that the district attorney has shared this information with the grand jury,” said Marietta defense attorney Philip Holloway, formerly a Cobb County prosecutor. “This might be some middle ground solution, something short of filing criminal charges, but being perceived as taking meaningful action to correct a problematic drug task force.”
The grand jury is expected to hear evidence through week’s end.
About the Author
