BLECKLEY COUNTY, Ga. — Bleckley County Sheriff Kris Coody released a statement early Wednesday morning about the events leading up to and through his arrest in Cobb County for misdemeanor sexual assault charges. Coody had turned himself in on Friday, Feb. 4, two days after Cobb County police had issued a warrant for his arrest.
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Coody is facing charges for allegedly groping someone at a Sheriff’s convention back in late January at the Renaissance Atlanta Waverly on Galleria Parkway in southern Cobb County, near the Battery. The sheriff’s statement said he was not available when the warrant was issued because he was out of the country at the time on a “previously planned church mission trip.”
According to the statement, he returned early from the trip and immediately turned himself in.
His statement said, in part, “Sheriff Coody takes these charges very seriously and has retained legal counsel to guide him through this process. He will comply with all legal obligations placed upon him.
“Sheriff Coody understands and appreciates the efforts taken to protect the privacy of the victim in this case. It would be improper for Sheriff Coody to contact the other party at this time, but he looks forward to personally expressing his regrets for any offense at the appropriate opportunity.”
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The day after police issued the arrest warrant for Coody, Channel 2′s Chris Jose was the only local reporter to travel to Bleckley County and get the sheriff’s side of the story. While Sheriff Coody was not there, Jose was able to find out that it was not Coody’s first brush with trouble as he was on probation with Georgia’s Peace Officer Standards and Training Council for an incident in 2009.
According to the statement Coody released, he has an attorney to help him through the case and comply with his legal obligations. Coody also expressed a strong desire to personally express his regrets to the other party for any offense.
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