3 deputies, 1 staffer fired from Burke County Sheriff’s Office

WAYNESBORO, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Three Burke County Sheriff’s Office deputies and one staff member have been fired in recent days.

Johvonte Singleton was fired last week after getting into an accident with his patrol car in Richmond County. He failed to report that to his agency and a claim has been made to the county, according to officials. His personnel files shows he was previously fired for going 100 mph in a patrol car with an inmate in the back.

Allen Scott Usry was also fired.

At the center of his firing was a Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council class he was teaching.

Authorities say in his separation notice that he “created a Google Classroom training platform invited certain students to take classes, and then awarded those POST training credits outside of the approved standards of training set by our certification authority.”

Authorities continue: “More pointedly, a host of training sessions, of which some are mandatory Governor’s Initiatives training (Use of Force, Community Policing, and De-Escalation), did not take place as specified. The training was reported to have occurred on a specific date, at a designated time, for a specific period, and in a specific location. However, our internal investigation has revealed evidence suggesting that the training did not occur in the manner purported, nor was it approved by the GA POST Council.”

Authorities said the training “does not appear to meet POST standards, which require a student to attend 90% of a standalone course.”

A preliminary investigation showed content material in the courses to be 10 minutes or less in several of the courses, yet the students received one hour or more of credit per class, authorities said in his separation notice.

According to POST, he taught several classes in October. Among them were two one-hour classes with the same two students: Lewis Blanchard, a former Burke County deputy who’s running against Burke County Sheriff Alfonzo Williams; and Calvin C. Davis of the Burke County Sheriff’s Office.

Also, public information officer Clare Allen was terminated last week during her one-year probationary period. No reason was given.

Daniel Rodriquez was just let go on grounds of conduct unbecoming an employee. No further information was given in the separation notice.

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