An Alma city councilman was fired from his job as a school bus monitor and then turned himself in to authorities this week, accused of showing pornographic material to children under 16. Jerry Alvin Sweat, 70, was booked into the Bacon County Jail after surrendering to law enforcement on Tuesday.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation says Sweat was charged with exhibiting harmful materials to minors, a charge tied to allegations that he displayed pornographic material to children while working as a bus monitor for the Bacon County School District, according to CBS News Atlanta. The GBI opened its investigation on Oct. 7 after the Bacon County School District Police Department requested state assistance, specifying that the alleged victims were children under the age of 16, as reported by WSB-TV.
District officials say they moved fast once the allegations surfaced. The Bacon County School District opened an internal investigation and terminated Sweat's employment before his surrender to authorities Tuesday, per the same WSB-TV account. He had been working as a bus monitor for the district at the time of the alleged incident.
Sheriff Clarifies Local Role as State Takes Lead
Bacon County Sheriff Andy Batten posted a public clarification on Oct. 10 stating that his office had not been notified of or involved in the bus monitor case before state investigators took it over. The statement appears to have been aimed at addressing community questions about why local law enforcement wasn't more visibly involved in the early stages of the case, per a post on the Facebook page the Blackshear Chronicles. It's not the first time the GBI has stepped in on a major case in the small city — the state agency also led the investigation into a fatal shooting in Alma in May 2025 (Hoodline report).
Sweat represents District 3 on the Alma City Council.
Why Sweat Still Holds His Council Seat
Sweat remains on the city council. Georgia law provides for suspension following a grand-jury indictment and automatic suspension upon felony conviction. The charge against Sweat is exhibiting harmful materials to minors under Georgia Code § 16-12-105.
Georgia law provides for recall by electors under the Recall Act, which lists grounds for recall.
Case Heads to Local Prosecutor's Office
The GBI's investigation remains active and ongoing. Once investigators complete their probe, the agency will submit its final case file to the Bacon County Solicitor's Office for prosecution, per Hazlehurst Now. Officials are asking anyone with information about the case to contact the GBI's regional investigative office in Douglas at 912-389-4103 or the GBI tip line at 1-800-597-8477.
