May 1, 2024
MARIETTA, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia sheriff pleaded guilty to groping TV judge Glenda Hatchett during a law enforcement conference last year and resigned from office Monday.
Bleckley County Sheriff Kristopher Coody pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of sexual battery in Cobb County State Court, news outlets reported. Hatchett addressed the court, saying the ordeal had “cut me to the core.”
Hatchett is an Atlanta attorney and star of the reality courtroom shows “Judge Hatchett” and “The Verdict With Judge Hatchett.” In 2016, she represented the family of Philando Castile, a black driver who was shot dead by a police officer in a Twin Cities suburb, in a highly publicized lawsuit.
During a January 2022 conference of the Georgia Sheriff's Association, while Hatchett was being introduced to a group of sheriffs at a hotel bar, Coody groped her, prosecutors said.
Thomas Brown, a former DeKalb County sheriff, said Hatchett came to the conference as his guest. Brown said he physically pulled Coody's hand off of her.
Judge Carl Bowers sentenced Coody to serve one year on probation, pay a $500 fine and perform 400 hours of community service.
The sheriff's attorney, Joel Pugh, said Coody sent a resignation letter Monday morning to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp.
Coody had served since 2017 as sheriff of Bleckley County, a rural community of about 12,000 people located about 40 miles southeast of Macon.
