Prosecutors have dropped criminal charges against a North Carolina man who was beaten by deputies several months ago inside a South Georgia jail cell.
Jarrett Hobbs was arrested in Camden County last year, accused of speeding, driving with a suspended license and possession of a controlled substance. But a Sept. 3 encounter inside the jail drew national attention after an attorney posted violent surveillance footage showing sheriff’s office employees repeatedly punching the 41-year-old Black man.
Three of those employees — Mason Garrick, 23, Braxton Massey, 21, and Ryan Biegel, 24 — were fired and charged after the GBI launched an investigation into the incident.
On Thursday, the Brunswick Judicial Circuit confirmed prosecutors have dropped all charges against Hobbs, including the battery, assault and obstruction counts brought against him as a result of the jailhouse scuffle.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
In the warrant dismissal, Assistant District Attorney Nigel Lush said the state declined to prosecute the drug and traffic offenses “in the interest of justice.” As for the assault, battery and obstruction charges, he wrote there is insufficient evidence to prove Hobbs is guilty.
In addition to the charges being dropped, Hobbs’ attorneys say they’ve reached a “significant settlement” with the Camden County Sheriff’s Office resolving all civil claims associated with the incident. They did not disclose the settlement amount.
“Let’s be clear: no one deserves to be beaten like that,” civil rights attorney Harry Daniels said in a statement. “This settlement doesn’t make up for that, not by a long shot. But, at the end of the day, Mr. Hobbs’ charges were dropped, the officers who beat him have been charged and this settlement gives him and his family a new way forward.”
At a November news conference announcing the jailers’ arrests, GBI Director Mike Register said the footage of the beating “shocks the conscience.”
“I believe that the majority of men and women who wear a badge in this country truly seek to protect and serve,” Register told reporters. “Unfortunately, some discredit the profession, the badge and the oath they swore to uphold.”
Prior to their firings, Massey had worked for the sheriff’s office six months, Garrick had been there 18 months and Biegel worked for the agency three years, according to the Camden County sheriff.
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