A veteran officer with the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office has been fired and arrested after allegedly soliciting business for a personal injury attorney while on duty.
Staff Sgt. David Kitchens, 48, was charged this afternoon with violating his oath of office and computer theft. Bond was set at $10,000.
The theft charge accuses him of using his work computer to access the records management system to access accident reports that he would print and give to private citizens and attorneys, according to a report. That is in violation of agency policies.
An investigation began Feb. 22 when a concerned citizen alerted the sheriff’s office Kitchens was soliciting business. Members of the Criminal Investigations Division investigated the matter and on Monday, Kitchens was terminated from employment, according to sheriff’s Capt. Steve Morris.
Kitchens surrendered at 5 p.m. today, but his mugshot was not immediately available.
He has been previously employed by the Burke County Sheriff’s Office from May 1983 until December 1994. He was employed by the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office from December 6, 1994 until he was fired Monday.