Governor Deal appoints panel to investigate sheriff arrest

Whether or not a Georgia sheriff arrested in connection to a confrontation in a Florida bar will be suspended now depends on a special panel appointed by Governor Deal.

Deal signed an executive order Wednesday instructing a panel to investigate Walton County Sheriff Joseph Chapman.

The Associated Press reports:

State law allows the governor to convene a panel of two sheriffs and the state attorney general to investigate and to recommend whether a sheriff facing criminal or ethics charges should be suspended.

News outlets report Chapman and one of his deputies were arrested in May 2016 in Carrabelle, Florida. They were charged with battery, but the charges were later changed to disorderly conduct and were dismissed last week upon completion of a “deferred prosecution agreement.”

Read more: http://evans.allongeorgia.com/governor-deal-appoints-panel-to-investigate-sheriff-arrest/