Augusta, GA
12 On Your Side Investigates: Fired marshal’s deputy pleads guilty to sexual battery
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Former Richmond County Marshal’s Deputy Detric Jones pleaded guilty to misdemeanor sexual battery from a case out of McDuffie County, according to court records.
Jones was terminated from the marshal’s office and is now under investigation for simple battery.
Internal affairs documents from the Richmond County Marshal’s Office reveal Jones was fired after an incident at Augusta Regional Airport on Dec. 9, 2025.
According to the victim’s statement, Jones approached a passenger assistance liaison for a badge check. The victim said Jones squeezed behind her chair and brushed his erect private part against her shoulder.
He then allegedly leaned in and asked her twice: “Did you feel that?”
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CCTV captured the two together, but the physical contact happened in a “blind spot” of the cameras. Jones denied the remarks, suggesting he “possibly brushed” against her by accident.
Records show Jones was fired that same day. The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office started its own investigation into Jones for simple battery.
Less than a week after being fired in Richmond County, Jones was hired as a deputy in Burke County on Dec. 15. His tenure there lasted exactly seven days. By Dec. 22, Burke County human resources scrubbed him from the employee list, stating he would “not be employed here.”
While Jones was wearing the marshal’s uniform, he had been indicted by a grand jury in McDuffie County for an incident from June 2024.
In McDuffie County, Jones was a captain with the McDuffie County Board of Education Police. A victim at a juvenile justice office said Jones groped her, put his hands inside her clothes and forced a kiss on her.
On Feb. 2, he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor sexual battery for that McDuffie County case. He was granted first-offender status, given 12 months of probation, and a $500 fine.
Pattern of resignations
Richmond County Marshal Ramone Lampkin said at an Augusta Commission meeting more than a year ago: “People deserve second chances. We don’t know all the facts behind it. We talked to all the parties involved, and I can’t say too much because it’s an active investigation, but I am clear that we are good with this hire.”
On Friday, Lampkin released another statement:
“I want to provide clarity on the Detric Jones hire. At the time of hiring, he was under indictment but fully cleared by POST and other agencies. We conducted thorough due diligence. Upon employment, he was warned that any further allegations would result in immediate termination. When we received an allegation involving a female, we terminated him immediately and reported it to POST to suspend his certification.”
Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council records show that for years, Jones “voluntarily resigned” from every agency he worked for. Because he resigned before investigations were finished, POST was never notified of his conduct.
POST confirms Jones is now under active investigation following his termination from the Richmond County Marshal’s Office.
READ MORE: POST RECORDS FOR DETRIC JONES
In 2015, he was suspended for inappropriate comments to students.
Despite that, he nearly became a sheriff, winning the primary in Wilkes County months ago.
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AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Democratic candidate for Georgia governor Olu Brown visited Augusta on Friday evening, stopping near the Sand Hills Community Center as early voting continues.
Brown is one of six candidates in the Democratic primary.
Campaign priorities
Brown said his vision as governor would focus on three main areas.
“One, it’s affordability around health care and making sure we expand Medicaid and expand Peach Care and make sure we continue to make our rural health care systems healthy and vital,” Brown said. “Number two, we’ve got to address education in all of Georgia, making sure every kid in Georgia gets an excellent education, and we’re paying our teachers more. And number 3, we’re protecting the rights of all women. Folks in the Gold Dome shouldn’t be making decisions about their bodies or the choices that they make.”
Brown is running against Amanda Duffy, Derrick Jackson, Geoff Duncan, Jason Esteves, Keisha Lance Bottoms and Mike Thurmond.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – An Augusta Prep student was arrested on a charge of terroristic threats over a picture of a LEGO gun he posted on social media.
It happened Wednesday, according to an incident report from the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office.
Eric Hedinger, the principal of Augusta Preparatory Day School, told deputies a student had uploaded a picture to Snapchat of a “pistol” with the caption “shooting up the school so I don`t have to take the stats exam tomorrow. Don`t come yall!”
The principal said he spoke to the student and his father about the photo.
The principal also provided deputies with the student’s address in Grovetown.
A deputy went there and was told by the student that the “pistol” was a LEGO set that he had built.
He also said the comment he made was supposed to be a joke because he was not looking forward to taking his Advanced Placement statistics test this week.
The student showed the deputy the box that the LEGO set came in, and how the set was already disassembled.
The deputy also looked in the boy’s room to make sure he was not in possession of any weapons.
The mother advised that there was one firearm in the residence but it was locked up.
The deputy contacted Judge Leslie Morgan and she issued a warrant for terroristic threats.
The student, age 18, was taken into custody and transported to the Columbia County Detention Center.
News 12 is not reporting his name or publishing his photo since the LEGO gun could not have actually harmed anyone.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
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