A former Hall County Sheriff's Office deputy was fired and criminally charged after allegedly slapping a 4-year-old child so hard that other children in the home reportedly heard it through a wall. Martin Simmons, who had been promoted to investigator just weeks earlier, was accused of striking the child in a Flowery Branch bedroom around 8 p.m. on Sept. 9, leaving a visible handprint, swelling and bruising on the boy's face.
According to the police report described by FOX 5 Atlanta, Simmons was in the child's bedroom trying to put him to bed when the boy began crying because he did not want to go to sleep. Other children in the home reportedly heard the slap through the wall, and another adult tried to intervene, per the report.
The child was left with a visible handprint on the left side of his face along with swelling and reddish abrasions, according to the police report cited by accessnorthga.com. Purple bruising became apparent the following day, the outlet reported. Oakwood Police Chief Tim Hatch said the assault left a “significant mark” on the child's face, per the same account.
Charges and the Path to Arrest
Oakwood police charged Simmons with battery under the Family Violence Act and third-degree cruelty to children under the Family Violence Act, according to accessnorthga.com. Oakwood Police Lieutenant Stewart Webb led the criminal investigation and presented the findings to a Hall County judge, who issued arrest warrants for Simmons, the outlet reported. Webb then served the warrants on Simmons at the sheriff's office along with agency personnel, per the same account.
Simmons was arrested and taken to the Hall County Jail, where he has since bonded out, according to Law&Crime. The police report also noted that Simmons is no longer allowed contact with the child, as reported by WSB-TV.
A Fast Rise, Then a Quick Firing
The Hall County Sheriff's Office asked Oakwood police to investigate after receiving a complaint alleging possible criminal misconduct by Simmons, according to FOX 5 Atlanta's reporting. The sheriff's office also conducted a separate internal investigation, and Simmons was fired on Oct. 14 after Oakwood police notified his supervisors of the pending arrest, per the sheriff's office account relayed by accessnorthga.com. Oakwood police are handling questions about the criminal case, FOX 5 Atlanta reported.
Simmons had joined the sheriff's office as a jailer in July 2023, graduated from the police academy in September 2024 and transferred to the Uniform Patrol Division the following month, according to WSB-TV. He was promoted to the rank of investigator earlier this month and was still in training for that job when he was fired, the station reported.
Part of a Pattern of Departures
Simmons is the latest in a string of Hall County sheriff's deputies fired, suspended or resigning, most in connection with misuse of license plate readers, according to wgtjradio.com. The outlet did not detail those earlier cases beyond that general description.
