County to pay $15K to settle wrongful arrest suit

County to pay $15K to settle wrongful arrest suit

Lowndes County supervisors voted in executive session Friday to pay a former New Hope High School student $15,000 to settle a wrongful imprisonment lawsuit against a justice court judge, board president Harry Sanders confirmed to The Dispatch. Judge Ron Cooke was the remaining defendant in a suit brought by Javonte Ellis, who was arrested for statutory rape in March 2015. Ellis was 17 at the time and had engaged in sex with a 14-year-old female. The charge was dropped a few weeks later after it was discovered the age difference between Ellis and the female was a few months shy ...

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http://www.cdispatch.com/news/article.asp?aid=72451