I-TEAM UPDATE: Fired Richmond County deputy claims she was sexually assaulted at sheriff’s office

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - She was fired for lying about a relationship with her supervisor, but a former investigator at the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office says she was untruthful because that supervisor ordered her to lie about it.

Allison “Allie” Walker says she has the text message to prove it.

Walker also claims she was the victim of a previous sexual assault at the same agency several years ago when she was a recruit. She says she was threatened into silence back then, so when her supervisor told her to lie in September, she felt threatened into silence once again.

ALLEGATIONS SURFACE UNDER OATH AT HEARING

Walker made these allegations – under oath – as she testified in front of the Sheriff’s Merit Board.

She asked the board to reconsider her termination, but the upheld Sheriff Richard Roundtree’s decision to fire her for lying.

Walker was fired back in September after reports say she lied twice when questioned about an inappropriate relationship with Capt. Brandon Beckman.

Beckman was a 24-year veteran with the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office and a member of Roundtree’s command staff.

Walker had only been with the agency for about four years and was working her way up the ranks.

WALKER: SUPERVISOR SEXUALLY ASSAULTED HER WHEN SHE WAS A RECRUIT

Walker testified – under oath – that a supervisor sexually assaulted her.

“The assault took place at the sheriff’s office,” Walker told the merit board.

“The supervisor, without any hesitation, with full confidence, proceeded to threaten me when he told me that he would have my career if I reported the assault. The supervisor told me I would never get promoted or go to any schools. I was terrified because I knew he knew where I lived,” Walker said.

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She never named her alleged attacker, but she said she lived in fear of him.

“While in the police academy, the supervisor continued to threaten me. For example, he would tell me that he owned me and reminded me that he controlled my career,” Walker testified.

WALKER: NOT REPORTING THE SEXUAL ASSAULT ‘CAME BACK TO HAUNT HER’

She claimed not coming forward and being truthful about that sexual assault several years ago “came back to haunt her” when Beckman first started to text her.

“I thought it was weird, and it made me uncomfortable at first,” Walker said. “I asked someone if they thought it was weird, because it made me a little uncomfortable, and they said, ‘No. It’s good that he’s shown interest in you.’”

Beckman was the head of the Criminal Investigations Division, and Walker was interviewing to be an investigator.

“There were times where Capt. Beckman would send me messages that made me uncomfortable, so I wouldn’t respond, which led him to message me from a secondary phone. On one occasion, Capt. Beckman drove by my residence because I wouldn’t message him. He messaged me saying, ‘I drove by your place, and your car wasn’t there.’”

Employees eventually tipped off Internal Affairs off about the relationship. That’s when Walker and Beckman were questioned about it.

According to documents the I-TEAM obtained from Internal Affairs, Beckman lied three times during interviews about a relationship with Walker. Records state he also failed a polygraph test. Walker never took a polygraph, but reports show she lied twice.

“I feared that if I told the truth, my career and life would be disrupted by Capt. Beckman, but this went against my integrity. So after the second interview, I called Internal Affairs crying, saying I can’t do this anymore. And I wanted to tell them the truth,” Walker testified.

WALKER: BECKMAN ORDERED ME TO LIE

Walker also told the board Beckman ordered her to lie, and she said she brought proof with her.

“I have a text message of him itting not to tell the truth,” she said.

Walker, who represented herself at the hearing, itted this was the first time she’d shared the text message.

Augusta Senior Staff Attorney Zena McClain-Haymon pointed out that was a problem. She reminded the board this came to light only after Walker was terminated.

Still, Walker was able to show a print-out of that message before the board made its decision.

WALKER PLEADS WITH BOARD FOR HELP

“I’m asking for help as a sexual assault victim while employed as a deputy with the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office,” she said. “I know I need counseling and other resources that would help me heal and cope with my trauma.”

While McClain-Haymon called all of this “unfortunate” and said she sympathized with Walker, she argued they were not there to discuss Walker’s past. She explained the reason for the hearing was because “she made a conscious decision to not tell the truth.”

ATTORNEY ARGUES WALKER NEVER SPOKE UP – UNTIL NOW

“None of these claims for which she is now stating – none of that was mentioned,” McClain-Haymon said. “She was given every opportunity to give a reason why or to say, you know, she was under pressure. None of that was mentioned during any of her interviews.”

At the hearing, Chief Deputy Patrick Clayton also testified. He said her “usefulness” as an investigator who hasn’t told the truth becomes very limited. He says that’s because if she testified in court, juries wouldn’t believe her. He says the fact that she lied would always be an issue.

BOARD UPHOLDS WALKER’S TERMINATION

Again, the Sheriff’s Office Merit Board upheld Walker’s termination. You can watch the full hearing here:

The rest of the investigation so far ...

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