MACON, Ga. — The Bibb County Sheriff's Office deputy fired after four inmates escaped on Oct. 16 under his watch was described in personnel records as "an excellent deputy" for the sheriff's office. But it wasn't all positive.
Records obtained by 13WMAZ through Georgia's open records law show the fired deputy, Travaris Freeman, was described by supervisors as "extremely reliable in a crisis," "highly motivated," "hardworking" and "an asset to the department and the squad."
They highlight his "positive attitude and professional demeanor" while working with inmates and co-workers, his "extremely positive attitude to the department" and called him "very reliable in crisis."
However, despite the praise, Freeman demonstrated issues with "judgment in decision making" and failing to "maintain sufficient competency" during his time with the sheriff's office, which — even before the jailbreak — had landed Freeman in hot water.
One incident even led to his suspension for using excessive force in a dispute.
'Inconsistent with your training'
In February of 2023, Freeman was suspended from the Bibb County Sheriff's Office for 10 working days without pay after kicking an inmate in the head.
The suspension stems from a Jan. 2, 2023, fight between multiple officers and an inmate, Freeman's personnel records show. After an internal affairs investigation, they found Freeman violated multiple Bibb County Sheriff's Office policies.
"You and several officers were involved in an altercation with an inmate," the report said. "In the video it shows that after the altercation the inmate had ceased resisting and was lying on the floor. At that time, he was kicked in the head by you."
Under department policies, deputies can only hit an inmate if they are attempting to escape, when multiple inmates assault an officer, if an inmate attempts to attack another person, or if the inmate has "obvious physical superiority or aggressiveness assaults a staff officer."
Because "the inmate had ceased resisting and was lying on the floor," the report found that Freeman was in violation of the jail's use of force policy.
A use of force infraction carries a punishment of a "suspension, to be determined by the Sheriff, up to termination and prosecution," the policy reads.
For that incident, Freeman was suspended without pay for 10 working days and placed on a six-month probation.
"This is a very serious matter, and you are hereby warned, if at any time in the future there are any violations of policies and procedures or misconduct of any type on your part, this will be grounds for termination," the letter read.
On top of that, he was cited for unsatisfactory performance, unbecoming conduct and violating sheriff's office rules.
The incident was cited in his next performance review.
"Deputy Freeman needs to keep a level head when dealing with inmates and needs to exercise patience and restraint," his July 2023 performance review read. "This resulted inhim [sic] being suspended 10 days for excessive force. He was able to recover (mentally) from that incident and has proven to the most complete deputy [sic] on this squad."
However, they say Freeman had made progress and "seeks responsibility and takes responsibility for his actions" and "is selfless and subordinates his personal needs to the mission of the correction decision."
His evaluation ended with: "I believe he will make an excellent patrolman upon completion of Mandate," which is the curriculum required before being promoted to a patrol deputy.
Only eight months later, Freeman would find himself in more hot water when the Oct. 16 escape came around.
Night of the Jailbreak:
Almost two months after Joey Founier, Chavis Stokes, Marc Anderson and Johnifer Barnwell escaped the Bibb County Law Enforcement Center's B300 wing, Freeman was fired as a deputy with the Bibb County Sheriff's Office.
Freeman was the only deputy assigned that night on Oct. 16 to oversee the B-block along with the A-block.
According to the Dec. 20 letter, Freeman "for several hours that night could hear damage being done on the block" and notified his supervisor, Cpl. Latesha Culver, of the situation at around 2 a.m.
However, the Internal Affairs Investigation found that Freeman had heard the noise at around 7 p.m. the night before, almost five hours before informing his supervisor.
An FBI affidavit found that only three hours after he first heard noise, a man — later identified by Sheriff David Davis as Jakaylen Williams — would park his car in front of the Bibb County jail and cut a hole in the fence at around 10 p.m.
Williams is then accused of dropping off a backpack at B300 wing window, which the inmates would retrieve. In surveillance footage, it shows the men running with that bag as they made their brazen escape that night.
"Your failings to act resulted in the escape of four inmates," the letter read. "This is a clear failure on your part to perform your sworn duties as a Bibb County Sheriff's Deputy."
They say he needed to report the noises he heard as soon as he heard it.
"In any event, immediate action should have been taken to investigate the disturbance," the report said. "It is the responsibility of the officer in charge of the area to maintain the safety and security of the jail."
They also alleged that Freeman had been dishonest in his explanation of what happened that night noting "there are also some discrepancies in statements that dispute your actions supported by video," the letter read.
After a month-long manhunt, authorities found the last escaped inmate, Fournier, on Nov. 18.
Freeman was officially fired on Dec. 20 — effective immediately — and was required to return all items provided by the sheriff's office by Dec. 27 to Corrections Mjr. Christopher Patterson.
Other policy issues:
During his three years with the sheriff's office, Freeman had been cited for some minor policy violations, like losing his identification badge or needing to iron his uniform more regularly.
However, they also found some more serious issues, such as failing to remain at his assigned post.
"Deputy Freeman needs to remain on his assign[ed] post and notify a supervisor when he needs to leave," a performance review from Aug. 30, 2022 read.
However, the report does not offer any insight as to where that critique comes from, if it was a singular instance or if it was a larger issue.
Bibb County Sheriff's Office performance reviews are graded one to four. Most of Freeman's reviews marked him right in the middle with a two out of four, but they gave him high marks in attendance.
Another review from July 2021 gave him praise for his motivation, professionalism and timeliness, but noted that he needed to "continued [sic] to enforce the Correction's Policies and Procedures."
Failure to enforce policies, however, would ultimately be what led to his firing.
When Freeman was terminated, they cited two procedures that Freeman had not done.
They say he had not done in-person survivance of every inmate, which guards are required to do every 60 minutes.
They also say Freeman had violated policies when conducting checks too. Sheriff's office policies require deputies to use a flashlight and make sure every inmate counted is breathing. They also need to be able to see human flesh.
On top of the jail operation violations, he was cited for unsatisfactory performance and unbecoming conduct, the records show.
On the night of the escape, only seven deputies were working in the cell blocks, including three deputies who only worked part of the shifts. There were other deputies working in booking as well as a corporal in charge, but they were not in the cell blocks.
Reporting contributed by Anthony Montalto.