He’s been at the helm of one of the top-rated police departments in Georgia three years running but now, Demorest Police Chief Robin Krockum is out of a job.
Former Police Chief Greg Ellingson was hired and sworn in to replace Krockum within hours of his firing. Ellingson, who Krockum succeeded in 2016, was sworn in as Demorest’s new police chief at 7:30 p.m. April 16 at Demorest City Hall.
“I had a call from the city council at Demorest asking me to come swear him [Ellingson] in,” Habersham County Probate Court Judge Pam Wooley tells Now Habersham. She says it was Demorest Councilman Nathan Davis who called her.
Mayor Austin says Demorest City Manager Kim Simonds fired Krockum Thursday following a disagreement over how to handle a disciplinary matter. The trouble reportedly began when a Demorest Police Officer commented on Facebook about the cost of the city’s new trash cans. Simonds apparently considered the remark to be disparaging.
“She told Robin to write him up,” Austin explains. “Robin stood up for the officer’s Constitutional rights.”
According to information obtained by Now Habersham, the officer in question asked in his Facebook post, “When did the citizens of Demorest vote on getting new trash cans?” He then said, “Guess we better start watching our water bills and start looking for the maintenance fee that will most likely be tacked on to it to reimburse the $7000 they spent on those trash cans.”
Addressing those comments in an email to Krockum, Simonds said: “Negative comments about the City of Demorest posted on social media by employees will not be tolerated.” That’s when she asked the police chief to fill out a disciplinary form for the officer’s personnel file. While Krockum said he disapproved of how the officer handled the situation, he declined to write him up citing case law that protects government employees’ free speech.
After an exchange of emails and a face to face visit, Austin says Simonds returned to the police department Thursday afternoon and fired Krockum. Austin was there at the time and witnessed the firing. He says it came as a shock to both him and Chief Krockum.
Now Habersham has reached out to Simonds and Demorest City Councilmen Nathan Davis, John Hendrix, and Sean Moore. They were not immediately available for comment.
An “outrage” and “injustice”
Austin, who has been at odds with Simonds, Davis, and Hendrix for months over their plans to dissolve the Demorest Fire Department says “The people need to know that this is the first official act of the dismantling of public safety in the City of Demorest. They took out a shining star.”
Krockum took over the job as police chief in January 2016 after the city council at that time voted not to reappoint Ellingson after 26 years.
Before becoming Demorest’s Police Chief, Robin Krockum worked with the Alto Police Department and Habersham County Sheriff’s Office. Since he took over in Demorest, the department has won first place in the small police department category of the Governor’s Challenge Awards every year since 2017. The annual awards program recognizes law enforcement officers and agencies from around the state.
In a statement issued late Thursday to Now Habersham Krockum said: “It has been my honor to serve the citizens of Demorest for the past four years. I’m proud of all the progress that we have made during this time. The men and women there are some of the finest I have ever worked with.”
In contrast to Krockum’s reserved comments, Mayor Austin is holding nothing back. “It’s the biggest injustice and the citizens of Demorest should be outraged at the way government is being conducted,” he says. He promises to challenge the firing “with gusto.”
