Federal Charges Brought Against Officer In Baby Bou Bou Case

Christian Boone
AJC.com
Jul. 22, 2015

The case agent who allegedly provided false information to a Habersham County SWAT team that maimed a toddler has been charged with federal civil rights violations.

Attorney Mawuli Davis, who represents the parents of Bounkham "Bou Bou" Phonesavanh, the 19-month-old who sustained severe injuries to his face and chest, along with possible brain damage, after a stun grenade deployed during the May 2014 raid landed in his playpen, confirmed the charges to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Habersham deputy sheriff Nikki Autry, working with the multi-agency Mountain Judicial Circuit Narcotics Criminal and Suppression Team, was indicted on four counts of criminal civil rights violations, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Toddler burned in police raid"Without her false statements, there was no probable cause to search the premises for drugs or to make the arrest," acting U.S. Attorney John Horn said Wednesday. "And in this case, the consequences of the unlawful search were tragic."

Autry was accused of using an unreliable informant who purchased a small amount of methamphetamine, though not at the residence where the raid was conducted.

The indictment alleges that Autry had not confirmed there was heavy traffic in and out of the residence, as stated in a warrant application supplied to a magistrate judge. Based on that information, a "no-knock" search warrant for the residence and an arrest warrant for Wanis Thonetheva., who allegedly sold the methamphetamine, was obtained.

Read More