In a social media statement made this morning, Sheriff Brent Holbrooks announced that a deputy was fired for misusing a license plate reader.
On Oct. 16, Deputy Jonathan Bean initially was placed on administrative leave while an internal investigation took place, and once that was concluded, he was fired.
No other details about what Bean used the camera for, who he targeted and whether there were any victims.
Holbrooks statement
The statement was released about 11 a.m. In it, the Sheriff said a complaint was received on Friday, October 16 by an outside agency, and an internal affairs detective immediately investigated and “concluded that the complaint was founded.” Action was taken immediately.
The Sheriff’s statement in full:
On Friday, October 16, the Macon County Sheriff’s Office received information from a creditable outside agency regarding the possible misuse of the License Plate Reader (LPR) system by an employee of the Sheriff’s Office. Upon receiving this information and after careful review, the deputy was immediately placed on administrative leave, and an internal investigation was initiated.
After a thorough internal affairs investigation by the Macon County Sheriff’s Office Internal Affairs Detective, the investigation concluded that the complaint was founded. After conclusion of the internal affairs investigation, Sheriff Brent Holbrooks determined that the appropriate course of action was termination of the employee, Jonathan Bean.
The Macon County Sheriff’s Office takes the appropriate use of its technology and resources seriously. Misuse of any kind will not be tolerated, and all allegations of misconduct will be addressed promptly and appropriately.
The Macon County Sheriff’s Office remains committed to maintaining public trust, accountability, and the integrity of its operations.
In defense of surveillance cameras
This comes just three months after the sheriff (pictured top at the commissioner’s meeting) defended the use of license plate readers for crime prevention.
“These cameras are utilized daily to assist investigation of numerous crimes, including breaking and entering, larceny, abduction, and narcotic-related offenses,” said Holbrooks in July. “Capturing license plate information in public places does not constitute a Fourth Amendment violation.”
At the time, all the commissioners expressed concerns about the cameras being used improperly and possible violations of the law by bad actors in law enforcement. The commissioners unanimously voted to defund the camera use but for a few places around schools.
Even though the opposition by the public at those meetings cited cases from other parts of the country, now, it seems those fears have been realized here at home.
Jonathan Bean
According to a July 2024 post by the sheriff’s office, Bean was detective and has been in law enforcement for 14 years. He was considered an asset for work he performed on a federal case.
“Detective Bean has been in law enforcement for 12 years total, and began his career at Franklin Police Department. He began working for us in 2016 on Road Patrol, then moved to Investigations in January 2021. He now primarily works in our Narcotics Unit.
“Yesterday, July 29, Detective Bean was sworn in at the US Marshal’s Office in Asheville to be a dual agent with Alcohol Tobacco Firearms (ATF.) This means he can take specific narcotics cases to a federal level, which would result in federal charges. Obtaining this duality is a lengthy six month application process.”
Macon Sense will share more information as we receive it.
