A Hall County deputy who was fired from his job following a fatal wreck has now been charged with vehicular homicide. The Georgia State Patrol charged Aaron Matthew Buchanan, 31, of Homer in the death of 84-year-old Jon William Jones of Gainesville.
The crash happened around 10:30 a.m. Thursday, March 3, at the intersection of GA 53/Dawsonville Highway and Nix Drive in Gainesville. The Hall County Sheriff’s Office says Buchanan was off duty in his marked Ford Taurus patrol car at the time of the crash.
According to the Georgia State Patrol, Buchanan was southbound on Dawsonville Highway “at a high rate of speed.” Jones was driving east on Nix Drive in a Lexus LS430 and had stopped at the stop sign at the intersection.
“The Lexus left the stop bar and traveled into the path of the oncoming deputy’s vehicle,” GSP says.
The patrol car struck the driver’s side of the Lexus, fatally injuring Jones. The wreck injured Buchanan and a passenger in the Lexus, 81-year-old Doris Claudine Jones of Gainesville. She is being treated for her injuries, according to GSP. Buchanan was treated and released from the hospital
In addition to vehicular homicide, troopers charged the now-former deputy with speeding, reckless driving, and serious injury by vehicle.
Following the crash, Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch issued his condolences to the family and said he was “saddened and shocked” by the tragic crash.
“Our employees are held to a higher standard and they are entrusted to serve and protect those in this community,” Sheriff Couch said. “While swift action was taken in terminating the deputy, nothing can replace the loss of a loved one.”
Sheriff Couch said the deputy failed to follow his training and the agency’s long-standing policies and procedures and neglected to obey state law, but did not include specific details.
“No one in law enforcement should ever cause the innocent to be harmed and this type of reckless behavior will not be tolerated by anyone,” he said.
Buchanan had worked for the Hall County Sheriff’s Office since September 2016. He had worked as a patrol deputy for HCSO since January 4, 2021.
The Georgia State Patrol Specialized Reconstruction Team is investigating the crash.
