GA Supreme Court Reverses Murder Indictments Against 6 Ex-Jailers

ATLANTA, GA — The Supreme Court of Georgia unanimously reversed Wednesday a Fulton County trial court ruling that threw out indictments against six ex-jailers accused in the death of an inmate.

The former jailers - identified as Aaron Cook, Jason Roache, Guito DelaCruz, Omar Jackson, Kenesia Strowder, and William Whitaker - were accused of beating, pepper-spraying and repeatedly shocking inmate Antonio May with a Taser-like device while on-duty at the Fulton County Jail, according to the opinion. May ultimately died, the opinion said.

Court documents did not list an incident date, but Atlanta News First reported the inmate's arrest happened in September 2018. The former jailers were initially indicted on suspicion of felony murder and other charges, according to the opinion.

"Last November, a Fulton County Superior Court judge quashed the indictments. He ruled prosecutors should have given the deputies notice of their indictment, thus allowing the jailers the opportunity to testify before the grand jury that eventually indicted them," Atlanta News First wrote.

The Supreme Court unanimously reversed the decision to throw out the indictments on the premise that the jailers did not meet the qualifications of a peace officer, meaning they do not have pre-indictment protections.

“Here, the trial court rested its conclusion that the defendants were charged with preserving the
public peace on the sole fact that the defendants were responsible for maintaining order among
the inmates confined to the Fulton County Jail. While it is true that the defendants’ work may have
benefited the public peace, a tangential benefit to the public peace is not synonymous with a duty to maintain the peace within the community as a whole,” Justice Charlie Bethel said in the opinion.