The Department routinely audits queries that officers make of law enforcement databases. Britton Cornell and Ryan Dugger, two former Franklin Police Officers, were flagged in one of those audits after it was determined they were querying information with no relevance to matters under investigation by the Department.

“After ordering an administrative investigation, I contacted District Attorney General Kim Helper to request a review of this matter by her office and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation,” said Chief Deborah Faulkner “The criminal indictments of Cornell and Dugger for Official Misconduct and Official Misuse of Information were the result. Franklin Police Officers depend on and value the trust of our citizens. Violating that trust is never an option.”

Both Dugger and Cornell resigned from their jobs as Franklin Police Officers in the midst of the Franklin PD’s internal investigation. Following that resignation, the Department immediately requested that the State of Tennessee Peace Officers Standards Training Commission (POST) decertify Cornell and Dugger, which will keep them from working as police officers anywhere in Tennessee. The ruling by POST is still pending.

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