DA drops charges against ex-Macon code enforcement officer. Here’s why
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify that Willcox still has pending charges related to a different incident.
Charges against a Macon-Bibb County code enforcement officer have been dropped after prosecutors said they discovered conflicting evidence in his case, according to a statement by the Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office on Friday.
District Attorney Anita Howard announced Friday that, due to issues with contradictory witnesses’ statements, charges against former officer Christopher Tyler Willcox were dropped “as it related to (the) alleged victim.”
Willcox still has charges pending relating to a different victim, according to Susan Ryan, a spokesperson for the Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office.
Willcox was charged with violating the oath of a peace officer after he allegedly pulled a woman over on Sept. 11, took her phone, and sent photos of the woman from her phone to his, according to a statement from the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office at the time. However, it’s unclear if this pertained to the case that was dismissed or the case that’s still pending.
In the case dismissed, prosecutors could not find proof that the alleged victim’s pictures were in his phone, according to a statement from Howard.
Prosecutors had previously authorized a warrant for Willcox’s arrest based on the evidence available at the time, which was the alleged victim’s statement made to investigators at the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office on Sept. 24, 2025. The alleged victim said that during the traffic stop, she voluntarily gave Willcox her phone to view insurance information, but then he “took the phone to his vehicle for approximately 5-10 minutes, during which time he unlawfully accessed her private information,” according to court documents.
Howard said Friday that the alleged victim’s statements changed, and became contradictory.
“She had initiated a conversation with an investigator with our office near the time of the incident and stated the defendant had pulled her over, but that she did not give him her phone,” Howard said.
The victim also continued to communicate with Willcox after the stop, according to the statement from Howard.
Howard stressed that witness credibility is essential to any prosecution, and when they provide conflicting accounts and physical evidence doesn’t support the accusations, they cannot meet their burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Their “ethical and legal duty as prosecutors requires us to dismiss charges when the evidence does not support them, regardless of the nature of the allegations,” she said in the statement.
This story was originally published January 2, 2026 at 6:14 PM.
