Georgia deputy sheriff facing backlash after having ex-wife locked up for criticizing him on Facebook

A deputy sheriff in Washington Country, Georgia is feeling the wrath of the community after he and a buddy on the force had his ex-wife and a friend of hers arrested for ridiculing him on Facebook, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting.

The dispute between the woman and her former husband has its genesis in a social media post dating back just before Martin Luther King Day in 2015, when she asked him to pick up medicine for their sick son and he refused.

A frustrated Anne King then took to Facebook to complain about ex-husband Capt. Corey King, who first asked to pull the post down because he found it embarrassing, then conspired with fellow law enforcement officer, Capt. Trey Burgamy, to file paperwork to obtain an arrest warrant for his ex as well as one of her friends who called him a "POS" in the comments.

According to the report, the two women were brought before a judge and charged with criminal defamation of character, with deputies handcuffing King at the end of the hearing and transported to the country jail where her ex-husband happens to be the commander. Her friend, who made the more critical comment, was allowed to leave and drive herself home.

“It was a classic good ole boy system at work,” attorney Ken Hodges explained. “What she said on Facebook wasn’t that offensive. It was her friend that posted the derogatory message.”

According to the arrested woman, she was surprised the judge took it as far as he did, claiming, "He said he had a good mind to ban me from Facebook. I was shocked.”

The ex-husband has defended his actions, saying in a deposition, "I don’t feel as though the portrayal of my fatherhood was truthful as what I do for my children and what I have done for my children as long as they have been alive.”

The case now goes before a federal judge who will be asked rule on the lawsuit filed by the wife asking if the two deputies violate King’s constitutional rights, including her right to free speech.

You can read the whole report here.