TOWNS COUNTY, Ga. — Towns County Sheriff Kenneth Henderson has been suspended for 60 days by Gov. Brian Kemp following a physical confrontation with a local police officer in 2024, Atlanta News First reported.
Georgia law allows the governor to call for an investigation that could lead to a sheriff’s removal or prosecution, according to the report. Kemp has appointed Attorney General Chris Carr, Coweta County Sheriff Lenn Wood and Newton County Sheriff Ezell Brown to investigate Henderson.
The altercation
The incident occurred in December 2024, when Hiawassee Police Officer José Carvajal responded to assist at a shooting scene involving Towns County Deputy Austin Bradburn, who had been shot in the leg, according to the report. Carvajal, a military veteran, used his training to apply a tourniquet and helped secure the scene while calling in a suspect description.
In the chaos, Carvajal stated he accidentally picked up the injured deputy’s firearm, mistaking it for his own. Body camera footage obtained by Atlanta News First shows him placing the gun in a holster, and other emergency personnel reportedly told him to take it. Once he realized the mistake, Carvajal secured the weapon in his waistband and said he would not handle it again until the Georgia Bureau of Investigation arrived.
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Tensions escalated when Sheriff Henderson arrived and questioned Carvajal about touching the firearm. When Carvajal attempted to walk away and told the sheriff to “get away from me,” Henderson physically confronted him, turning him around by force. Bodycam footage shows deputies stepping in, with one calling the sheriff’s actions “ridiculous.”
The situation intensified when Carvajal tried to walk away and told Henderson to “get away from me.” The sheriff then physically confronted the officer, turning him around by force. Multiple deputies intervened, and some expressed frustration with their sheriff’s actions.
One deputy, heard on body camera, called the behavior “ridiculous” and said, “This isn’t the first, it isn’t the second time, this isn’t the third time.” That deputy resigned shortly after and joined the Georgia State Patrol, according to the report.
Henderson ultimately had Carvajal handcuffed and held in the back of a patrol vehicle for more than 20 minutes. He was later released without charges and ordered to leave before the GBI arrived.
History of tension
The confrontation reflects longstanding friction between Sheriff Henderson and the Hiawassee Police Department. In 2022, Henderson allegedly interrupted a Hiawassee officer during a traffic stop near the city’s jurisdiction, leading to a heated exchange captured on video, according to the report. In a separate incident, a deputy secretly recorded Henderson criticizing his own staff for fraternizing with Hiawassee officers, whom he described as “enemies.”
Bradburn’s shooting ruled self-inflicted
Bradburn, who initially reported being shot during a struggle with a suspect, was later found to have shot himself twice in the leg, according to the report. GPS data from his patrol car contradicted his account. He was arrested in January and charged with filing a false report.
