CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — Former Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill has made his first public statements since he was put on community confinement.
Hill was moved from a federal prison in Arkansas last month. A federal jury convicted Hill in October of violating the civil rights of six detainees at the Clayton County Jail. The government said Hill disregarded the detainees’ constitutional rights by putting them in restraint chairs for hours as punishment.
The “retired” sheriff took to Facebook to share his displeasure at the current state of the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office – and lays it at the feet of the current sheriff, Levon Allen.
“The Sheriff’s Office is currently 14 million dollars over budget. Some of this can be attributed to Allen using the budget to buy 2 million dollars worth of electric vehicles, $10,000 worth of personal clothing, and allowing unlimited overtime for friends and ten family members who are on the payroll,” Hill said. “Secretaries and clerks have also been issued police vehicles to drive instead of assigning them to deputies who need them to patrol our county. On-duty personnel have been used to help family and friends move furniture.”
Hill said the mismanagement at the Sheriff’s Office and jail has led to a dangerous situation.
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“This type of mismanagement of funds and personnel has created a dangerous environment at the jail which has led to 3 inmates being murdered while others are frequently stabbed or assaulted. This along with an officer being stabbed in the head by an inmate also clearly puts employee’s safety at risk, and some have resigned for fear of their safety,” Hill said. “Asking for additional millions of dollars from the County Commission as a solution to the violence in the jail is not good common sense, and even if granted will not solve this crisis. Jails get out of control because of lack of leadership as opposed to lack of funds.”
Hill said that based on what he has seen, the “disappointing job performance and poor results” from Allen, he can no longer give the sheriff his endorsement.
In concluding his post, Hill thanked the people of Clayton County for their love and support.
Hill is currently serving out the rest of his 18-month sentence in community confinement following what he called his “politically motivated prosecution.”
“Community confinement means the individual is in either home confinement or a Residential Reentry Center (RRC, or halfway house),” the Bureau of Prison said in an email to Channel 2 Action News.
A jury found former Hill guilty on six counts of civil rights violations in Oct. 2022.
Hill was the sheriff in Clayton County for nearly 15 years before he was indicted and suspended in 2021.
A year later, Hill was found guilty of using unreasonable force and violating inmates’ constitutional rights by strapping them down and leaving them in restraint chairs inside the Clayton County Jail, sometimes for hours.
Under federal law, the chair can only be used if detainees are at risk of harming themselves or others.
Jurors found that Hill caused physical pain and bodily injury to six men.
Two months after the verdict, the state of Georgia revoked the law enforcement certification for Hill. Under Georgia law and POST rules, an officer is not allowed to continue in that capacity with a felony conviction.
Channel 2 Action News has reached out to Allen for a response to the accusations Hill has made in his Facebook post. We are awaiting a response.
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