Prosecutors, police made up evidence, business owners claim in lawsuit

A Macon couple charged in a Peach County gambling sting have filed a federal lawsuit, contending that prosecutors and police fabricated evidence and violated their civil rights.

Ronnie and Lee Bartlett and their now-shuttered Byron business, Captain Jack’s Crab Shack, filed the suit Tuesday against David Cooke, the Macon Judicial Circuit district attorney; Cooke’s special prosecutor, Michael Lambros; Byron police investigator Melanie Bickford; and Centerville police officer Christine Welch. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, which his headquartered in Atlanta.

The Bartletts are represented by Mike Bowers, a former Georgia attorney general, and other lawyers from his Atlanta firm.

In the lawsuit, the Bartletts allege that the defendants have a “pattern and practice” of seizing assets from businesses operating “bona fide coin operated amusement machines” and extorting a resolution in which they keep a portion of the money “improperly seized” while threatening criminal prosecution.

Cooke then creates an “unaccountable fund” for the money, minus the money paid to Lambros, and spends the funds on “items that he believes will garner him favor with his constituency,” the suit maintains.

Reached for comment, Cooke issued a statement saying, “We are aware that attorney Mike Bowers has filed a lawsuit with false claims and look forward to vigorously defending our work and the integrity of our office and our middle Georgia police departments.”

As in all cases, Cooke said, “Our office adhered to the highest standards to protect both our community in middle Georgia and the rights of the accused. The claims made by Mr. Bowers are false and will be proven false.”

He said the underlying criminal case against the Bartletts still is under active investigation.

At the time of the May 5, 2015, gambling raid, the Bartletts owned and operated Captain Jack’s Crab Shack, 107 Chapman St. in Byron; Friends Bar & Grill, 7504 Industrial Highway in Macon; Chevy’s of Warner Robins, 228 Russell Highway in Warner Robins; and Peach Auto Sales, 660 Peavy Road in Byron.

All four businesses have “been destroyed” due to the prosecution and the related civil seizure proceedings filed under the state’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, according to the suit.

In the suit, the plaintiffs say their electronic gaming machines were legal and no money laundering occurred.

They contend that Welch and Bickford admitted during a 2015 court hearing that authorities had no evidence that false reports had been filed with the Georgia Department of Revenue or that money laundering had occurred, according to the suit.

The Bartletts also make issue of Ronnie Bartlett’s being forced to wear an ankle monitor despite his never being a threat to law enforcement.

In a July 25 motion filed in the civil forfeiture proceedings, prosecutors set out a list of facts “to correct the plethora of misrepresentations and falsehoods” made by the Bartletts and their legal team in that case.

In that motion, prosecutors said Ronnie Bartlett had previously been charged with illegal gambling and that he broke into Captain Jack’s and stole alcohol after the restaurant was placed in the care of a court-appointed receiver.

Further, they argued that the Bartletts continued to operate gaming machines at Chevy’s and Friends Bar & Grill while being prohibited by the court from doing so.

A judge revoked Ronnie Bartlett’s bond in June 2015 after allegations that he’d violated the terms of his bond. Electronic monitoring was a condition of the judge’s July 4, 2015, order approving a new bond, according to court records.

Prosecutors further contend in their July 25 motion that the Bartletts have filed for bankruptcy protection to hide illegal gambling money and that without the illegal operation of the gaming machines — and the large amount of cash they generated at Chevy’s, Friends Bar & Grill and Captain Jack’s — the stores could not survive.

More than $2.5 million was inserted into the machines annually, they said, citing figures reported to the Georgia Lottery Commission.

None of the illegal proceeds from the alleged illegal gambling was reported on the Bartletts’ tax returns, according to the motion.

Prosecutors said in the motion that the Bartletts’ legal team has “twisted the statements” made by Welch and Bickford at the 2015 hearing and that the attorneys should be sanctioned for making false allegations.

The Bartletts and Captain Jack’s Crab Shack are seeking compensatory and punitive damages.

This story was originally published August 12, 2016 at 7:03 PM with the headline "Prosecutors, police made up evidence, business owners claim in lawsuit."