May 25, 2013
Tracy Banks - Suspension Letter (PDF)
Special Incident Report on Sex with Inmate (PDF)
Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- The Department of Juvenile Justice has announced the termination of yet another juvenile corrections officer.
Tracy Banks, an employee of the Augusta Youth Development Campus, had previously been suspended with pay as investigators looked into "allegations of an inappropriate relationship involving Banks and a resident under the care and custody of the department."
News 12 launched a full-scale investigation into the Augusta Youth Development Campus in November after a 19-year-old inmate was fatally assaulted.
Click here to see all of our coverage from throughout this investigation.
To read an incident report about this allegation, click here.
“I find this latest officer misconduct case particularly egregious,” said Commissioner Gale Buckner in a news release. “Because the events and blatant policy violations that lead to the termination of JCO Tracy Banks for inappropriate conduct occurred even after we publicly announced we were bringing in agents from DJJ and the GBI to open investigations into misconduct cases at the Augusta YDC.”
Banks' firing stemmed from last week when DJJ officials and Georgia Bureau of Investigation agents came for a surprise visit.
Although many terminations have already been made, Buckner said that doesn't mean they are anywhere close to stopping.
“Apparently we have some policy violators who might think we’re done, but we’re not,” said Buckner in a news release. “After our administrative probe is complete, the GBI investigations will continue and then criminal charges will be pursued.”
Last week, two more employees were fired, including Kenneth Payton and Dondale Stroman. Payton was fired for “allegedly initiating a physical altercation with a resident," and Dondale Stroman was terminated due to the “alleged improper use of physical intervention techniques.”
Have information or an opinion about this story? Click here to contact the newsroom.
Copyright WRDW-TV News 12. All rights reserved. This material may not be republished without express written permission.
