Cheating allegations cost Georgia State Patrol $2M

When they learned who had failed the Speed Detection Operator Exam, the cadets in the 106th class of Georgia State Patrol troopers knew they were in trouble.

“I wanted to have a good grade, I’m worried because these other guys have already failed the test and you know, for what I know, these guys aren’t stupid,” classmate Troy Pudder would later tell investigators with the GSP. In fact, they were standouts: One was class president, the other a squad leader.

Their instructors at the state’s Public Safety Training Center in Forsyth were also worried. Pass

ing the speed detection exam was required for graduation from the nine-month-long program. Retakes were prohibited. And an agency already understaffed and graying could ill-afford to lose a large segment of cadets.

What followed would shake the agency to its core. An internal inves

tigation by the GSP’s Office of Professional Standards ultimately concluded that virtually everyone who took the test had cheated. GSP head Mark McDonough dismissed them all, saying he would not abide a dishonest trooper. Two weeks later, McDonough announced his retirement, per Gov. Brian Kemp’s request.

The agency said the scandal ended up costing them $2 million, including revenue lost when 133 traffic citations issued by the troopers were tossed. The hit to

the GSP’s reputation was just as damaging.

Then, in late January, the story took a dramatic turn. Georgia’s Peace Officers and Standards Train

ing Council (POST), following a yearlong audit of the GSP’s training system, issued a nearly 8,000page report clearing all but one of the 32 fired troopers.