John Powell is the former chief of police of Glynn County, Georgia, and Brian Scott was Powell’s chief of staff. Both men were indicted for “willfully and intentionally” violating the terms of their oaths of office under a Georgia law criminalizing such conduct. The indictment alleged that Powell and Scott failed to investigate several reports of misconduct by officers of a narcotics team under Powell’s command, such as fraternizing with known felons, conducting undercover operations without authorization, taking police actions in another state, and conducting vehicle stops under questionable circumstances. According to the indictment, Powell and Scott violated their oaths by failing to uphold the due process clause of the United States Constitution as interpreted by Brady, which requires criminal prosecutors to turn over any evidence favorable to a criminal defendant. Powell and Scott moved to dismiss the indictment on the grounds that, as alleged, none of the conduct constituted a Brady violation, and therefore, neither man could have committed the crimes of which he was accused. The trial court denied the motion, and defendants appealed.
The Supreme Court of Georgia reversed, finding that “it is legally impossible to commit the crimes in the way the State alleged in the indictment.” The Court noted that the State had not adequately established that a Brady violation can even constitute a criminal violation of the oath of office. More importantly, the State failed to allege that Powell or Scott violated Brady, because their alleged failure to investigate several incidents of misconduct had no bearing on their obligation to turn over exculpatory evidence to a criminal defendant. Even if Powell and Scott fully admitted to the conduct of which they were accused, they would still be innocent of the crime of violating their oaths. As a result, the Court dismissed the indictment.
Powell v. State, 901 S.E.2d 182 (Ga., 2024).