Northwest Georgia officer arrested for assaulting arrestee
Joel Wooten mug shot, courtesy of the Chattooga County Sheriff's Office.
CHATTOOGA COUNTY, Ga. - A former police officer in northwest Georgia is in Georgia Bureau of Investigation custody after he punched a handcuffed arrestee, according to the GBI.
What we know:
Joel "Chris" Wooten, 52, was arrested Wednesday, according to the GBI. He's charged with aggravated battery and violation of oath by a public officer.
The GBI said these charges stem from last week when the Chattooga County Sheriff's Office asked the GBI to investigate Wooten.
The Chattooga County sheriff sent a release that explained what he believed happened.
Sheriff Mark Schrader said two of his deputies were responding to calls for help with a traffic stop where the driver didn't stop for Trion city police officers.
The officers helped arrest the two people in the vehicle and took them to the Chattooga County jail.
One of the arrestees was taken from the jail to the hospital with injuries.
Deputies later reported to Sheriff Schareder that they believed officers had used excessive force.
Schrader said he looked into the complaint and decided to ask the GBI to investigate.
Just over a week later, the GBI arrested former officer Wooten.
Wooten had punched an arrestee in the face several times while they were handcuffed, according to the GBI.
Wooten was booked into the Chatooga County jail Wednesday and released on a $20,000 bond.
What they're saying:
"Law Enforcement officers are required to use force in the performance of their sworn duties. Typically, the use of physical force is the last option used to arrest an individual. Law Enforcement officers are trained to use only the reasonable amount of force necessary to effectuate an arrest. The issues concerning this incident are outside of those standards, intolerable and should never happen," said Schrader.
What we don't know:
FOX 5 does not know when he will be court again.