Lieutenant Quit After Taking Gun

Lt. Vernon Bailey, one of two officers involved in the of Brice Wilson, resigned in August for taking a pellet gun when responding to a fire four days before the traffic stop. 

Wilson, 23, claims he was inappropriately touched by another Powder Springs officer, Sgt. Keith Moore, during the stop (see attached WSB-TV Channel 2 report). A struggle began, and Bailey, who came to assist Moore, tased Wilson. The internal affairs investigation into that incident is continuing.

On May 15, Officer Paul Reynolds made a traffic stop in the area of Lewis Road, and the driver fled on foot, according to a July 10 letter from then-interim Police Chief Tom Arnold to the current chief, Charlie Sewell. Reynolds requested a K-9 unit to track down the driver, and Moore arrived with a dog.

While looking for the driver, the officers found a shack containing several items, including a bed, work boots and a pellet rifle.

After verifying the rifle wasn’t loaded, the officers continued to search for the driver.

“The driver was not located and the officers returned to the scene of the traffic stop and were informing Lt. Bailey of what they had found in the shack,” the July 10 letter reads.

On May 28 about 8 p.m., Bailey, Reynolds and Officer James Wright responded to a fire at an abandoned mobile home off Lewis Road close to the shack, the letter reads.

Bailey attempted to put the fire out with an extinguisher until firefighters arrived. Upon exiting the mobile home, Bailey said someone might have been “huffing paint” and set the trailer on fire, according to a written statement by Reynolds.

“After Lt. Bailey made this comment, having cardinal knowledge of the shack’s location, I advised him that the shack could be a good location for the individuals involved in the structure fire to run to,” Reynolds wrote.

Bailey walked into the woods toward the shack and left with a pellet rifle, according to Reynolds’ statement, as well as one from Wright.

According to the letter from Arnold, the officers said Bailey “walked up to (them saying) how the gun was worth approximately $400 to $450 and that he had had one when he was a kid or something to that affect.”

Bailey said he would take the gun home and refurbish it, Arnold’s letter says.

“There may have been some conversation about selling it or just keeping it, but the officers could not remember for sure,” the letter adds. “Lt. Bailey then placed the gun in his patrol car and left the scene.”

Moore went to Arnold with the concerns of Reynolds and Wright on May 31. Arnold met with Reynolds and Wright on June 6 and asked them to write out statements about what happened. He received Reynolds’ statement June 16 and Wright’s the following week.

In mid-June, Arnold went to the shack to try to locate its owner but wasn’t able to find one, according to his letter to Sewell.

On July 8, Arnold met with Bailey about the pellet gun, and the lieutenant admitted taking it. Arnold told Bailey to retrieve the gun and place it in evidence. 

He also told Bailey that he had violated his oath of office, the Georgia Criminal Code and the Police Department’s policy. 

Sewell had been but wasn’t set to start until Aug. 1. Arnold told Bailey that any disciplinary action should come from Sewell “or at least he should have the opportunity to review the complaint and evidence and have some input into the decision.”

The taking of the rifle could lead to termination and, if someone filed a report, a theft charge, Arnold told Bailey.

In a July 12 handwritten statement to Arnold, Bailey wrote: “An apology after the fact doesn’t fix anything, but I am sorry for any embarrassment this has caused you or to the department. I do regret my decision and actions. If possible, I would like to request that you handle this matter so that if it does not come to termination, I can hopefully work with Chief Sewell to heal the department.” 

Bailey also requested that he have the opportunity to resign instead of being fired.

On Aug. 3, two days after Sewell started, Bailey wrote to the new chief: “(In) light of the complaint brought against me, and in order to prevent any further embarrassment to the city of Powder Springs, I hereby tender my resignation effective immediately.”

Attached to this article are:

• Arnold’s letter to Sewell.
• Reynolds’ account of the incident.
• Wright’s account of the incident.
• Bailey’s handwritten statement.
• The log of the pellet gun as evidence.
• Bailey’s resignation letter.