Former Bibb deputy sentenced to prison for 'betrayal of trust'

After graduating from high school in Jones County, Andre Pope enlisted in the Army and worked as a military police officer.

Honorably discharged, he got a job with the Georgia Department of Corrections and later with the Bibb County Sheriff's Office as a corrections officer.

Three years ago, his classmate, 22-year-old Ashley Brown, was charged with murder in the shooting death of a man outside a south Macon Waffle House. Brown is being held at the Bibb County jail, where Pope worked.

On Friday, Pope pleaded guilty to delivering two cellphones to Brown and drew a 10-year sentence, three of them in prison.

District Attorney David Cooke said authorities, who monitor phone calls placed by Bibb jail inmates, heard inmate Deonte Kitchens ask his aunt to pay Pope to smuggle in a cellphone to Brown. Kitchens, 26, is an alleged gang member charged with murder in a 2011 shooting death.

When confronted, Pope admitted smuggling in phones for Brown twice.

Since Pope gave Brown the phones, Kitchens used a phone to threaten witnesses and conspire to commit murder, Cooke said.

Had Pope, 25, not pleaded guilty Friday, prosecutors had planned to re-indict his case, adding charges alleging that he had violated the state's gang act.

"These cell phones, because of what they're used for, are just as dangerous as guns and shanks," Cooke said.

They undermine the integrity of the jail and law enforcement while also putting people outside the jail in danger, he said.

Cooke said prosecutors would dismiss two counts charging Pope with violating his oath of office, in part because a copy of his oath couldn't be located, meaning that he might not have taken the oath by the time he was arrested last year.

John Carter, Pope's lawyer, said Pope was in training at the time.

He said Brown told Pope a "sob story," convincing him to get him a cellphone.

Later, Brown told Pope someone had taken his phone and he needed another one.

Carter said Pope never intended for anyone to get hurt.

Speaking to the judge before his sentencing, Pope apologized for his actions.

"Every day I think about what I did, the people I let down," he said.

Pope said he didn't know Kitchens but had known Brown since middle school.

He said he had a plan for his life. He wanted to work in law enforcement.

"It failed because of me," Pope said. "There's nobody to blame but myself."

Pope's pastor and great-grandmother, the woman who raised him, also spoke, asking for mercy on Pope's behalf.

Judge Howard Simms said whether Pope took his oath of office or not, he "made a promise" to the community.

"This is a betrayal of trust," he said.

Simms agreed to sentence Pope as a first offender, meaning that he won't have a felony record if he completes his sentence successfully without any hiccups. If he violates his probation, he could be resentenced to more time in prison.

Speaking after the hearing, Cooke said any law enforcement officer who betrays the public's trust and anyone who helps gang members should expect to go to prison.

"Were it not for deputy Pope's distinguished military career, I expect he would be serving even longer," he said.

To contact writer Amy Leigh Womack, call 744-4398 or find her on Twitter@awomackmacon.

This story was originally published January 29, 2016 at 1:27 PM with the headline "Former Bibb deputy sentenced to prison for 'betrayal of trust' ."