Greene County Deputy Jonathan Franco has been fired by the Greene County Sheriff’s Office for violating the deputy’s oath of office and having an inappropriate relationship with a student, according to a letter from Chief Deputy Richard Campbell filed in Franco’s personnel records.
Sheriff Donnie Harrison said the deputy was fired on April 25 after the GCSO learned of alleged misconduct at Lake Oconee Academy.
Harrison also said he immediately contacted the GBI to investigate and cited the ongoing investigation as the reason he could not go into specific details of the case.
The deputy has not been arrested, as was claimed on some social media sites over the last few days.
Franco had most recently been assigned as the school resource officer at Lake Oconee Academy.
After Franco’s termination, Lake Oconee Academy Executive Director Brad Bowling emailed parents to inform them that the SRO was no longer working at the school.
Bowling wrote, “LOA’s school resource officer has been terminated from his position with the Greene County Sheriff’s Department and is no longer at LOA.”
The incident is currently under investigation by the GBI, which routinely handles internal department investigations.
“We understand that situations like this can be unsettling, and we want to reassure you that the incident was handled immediately upon our knowledge of it,” Bowling continued. “The safety and well-being of our students and staff remain our utmost priority. While we cannot provide further details at this time due to the ongoing investigation, please know that we are cooperating fully with the Greene County Sheriff’s Office and the GBI and are committed to maintaining a safe and supportive learning environment for all students.”
Franco joined the Greene County Sheriff’s Office in September of 2019.
According to personnel records, Franco received a reprimand in June 2020 for responding to calls he had not been dispatched to.
Franco received counseling in March of 2020 after he was observed speeding (80 mph) on Highway 44 in Putnam County.
He received another reprimand in August of 2021 for not responding to a call and then running out of gas in his patrol vehicle.
According to a memo dated July 18, 2021, Franco had been warned several times about sleeping in his patrol vehicle on the side of the road. His supervisor recommended he be suspended without pay for a minimum of two days for such infractions.