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WAYNESBORO, Ga. ()- A deputy from the Burke County Sheriff’s Office has stepped down amid accusations of assault.
This resignation follows two recent incidents at the county jail involving the same detainee, resulting in the departure of another officer as well.
Previously, we reported on 25-year-old Jayven Ward’s involvement in two separate altercations that affected a pair of Burke County deputies.
New developments reveal a third incident over the weekend centered around Ward, prompting the deputy’s decision to leave the force.
Burke County Sheriff Alfonzo Williams remarked, “We anticipated this outcome last week, and now it has come to pass.”
The Sheriff tells us this started on Saturday night, when Ward was let out of his cell to get some fresh air following a lockdown from the previous incidents.
Security camera footage shows he acted out by climbing onto jail bars. Deputies had to use force to get him down from the bars.
Then in the early hours on Monday, the Sheriff says Ward allegedly threw a container of urine at a deputy while he was serving him breakfast.
Ward is seen doing the same thing to another deputy the previous weekend, along with throwing feces at a different officer the following day.
“This is an inmate who’s in jail for murder, and obviously has no regard for the safety of our officers, our inmates, or himself for that matter,” said Williams.
The officer involved in the 3rd incident has since resigned after one year with the Sheriff’s Office, citing unsafe conditions.
The Sheriff confirms another deputy, who was not involved in the incident, has also resigned after joining the department just one week ago.
He continues to advocate for action when it comes to improvements at the county jail.
“We’re not going to get officers here if we continue to have these assaults. We need a conversation with the commission. We need a dialogue, we have not had that, and we desperately need it. We need a public who will get involved to realize that it’s going to cost you one way or the other,” Williams said.
We reached out to county leadership, and received a statement from County Commission Chair Evans Martin.
The statement reads:
“We are currently working with architects for jail renovations. We hired a consultant who has completed inspections and concluded that our jail could benefit from updates. Funds have been allocated for jail renovations, and we are working to move forward. It is a slow and time-consuming process. One barrier that we are facing is the sheriff wants to use the allocated jail renovation funds in other areas not related to the jail. He is currently suing us for control of the camera funds that we have allocated for jail renovations. This dispute ties up the funding and prolongs the process. Unfortunately, he refuses to utilize the county building maintenance department to maintain the jail building, which incurs more costs for his department and prevents the county from assisting with maintenance or small updates that could be done in the interim. We hope that a resolution in the court case will come soon, and we can move forward with our plans for renovation of the jail.”
~Evans Martin, Chairman, Burke County Board of Commissioners
The back and forth over the use of camera funds has now led to county leaders and the Sheriff going to court.
“I have tried everything I can to work with this commission, and to get them to work with us. It’s a very tumultuous relationship,” said Williams. “I have a constitutional responsibility to the taxpayers, and I have to fulfill that obligation. It’s unfortunate that they don’t understand how that works.”
Sheriff Williams tells us Jayven Ward has now been transferred to the Emanuel County Detention Center.
Burke County leaders will have a work session on March 18th to further discuss their plans to upgrade facilities at the jail.