Judge Hatchett recalls night Ga. sheriff sexually assaulted her, left her feeling ‘powerless’

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A popular TV judge who was groped by a Georgia sheriff says justice was served by his guilty plea, but the incident has led her into a deep depression.

Bleckley County Sheriff Kris Coody pleaded guilty to groping Judge Glenda Hatchett. Channel 2 Action News was the only local station in the courtroom as the former sheriff was sentenced to a year of probation, 40 hours of community service and other conditions.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Coody also sent a letter to Gov. Brian Kemp and the Georgia Sheriff’s Association resigning from his position effective immediately.

“And he didn’t get first offender treatment, which I am most pleased about. So he will always have this on his record as well he should. Justice. Justice,” Hatchett said.

Hatchett spoke exclusively with Channel 2′s Karyn Greer after her morning in court, tearfully recalling that night of the incident.

Coody grabbed Hatchett’s chest at the Renaissance Atlanta Waverly Bar while attending the Georgia Sheriffs Association’s winter meeting in January 2022.

“I was being gracious and I said, ‘My family is from Georgia, Chip County, but I don’t know where Bleckley County is.’ And we kind of got that conversation going. And he poked me in the heart of Georgia. Right. And I did not take offense to that. But then he grabbed my breast. Grabbed my breast, was squeezing on my breast. And rubbing my breast,” Hatchett told Greer.

TRENDING STORIES:

• PHOTOS: Here are the top 10 cities outside of Georgia where Atlantans are moving
• Trump says he will turn himself in at Fulton County Jail this week in new social media post
• Gunman had chilling words for teen shot, likely paralyzed after Clayton County football game

That’s when she said U.S. Marshal and former DeKalb County Sheriff Thomas Brown forcibly removed Coody’s hand.

“I was stunned. I was. I was stunned. I was angry at myself because I’m like, ‘Why didn’t I slap him? Why didn’t I kick him?’ But Karen, I was just in that moment. I was just frozen,” Hatchett said.

“So you immediately filed charges?” Greer asked.

“I did. The next day. I did,” Hatchett said. “I thought, ‘OK, I’m a strong woman. I’m a strong Black woman. I can handle this. I got this.’ This brought me to my knees. I don’t know how else to describe it. It’s just. To feel that powerless. And not having any control over somebody who would do something so horrific and demeaning to you. How dare he do that to me? How dare he treat me like that?”

Hatchett says she is still in counseling and probably will be for the rest of her life. She says this was something that definitely changed her and her outlook on victims of assault and abuse.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Georgia sheriff pleads guilty to groping Judge Hatchett, resigns effective immediately

©2023 Cox Media Group