Deputy fired, accused of hitting 4-year-old hard enough for other kids to hear through wall

Hall County Sheriff’s Office fired Martin Simmons, who had been promoted month before his arrest

Former deputy accused of hitting 4-year-old hard enough to hear through wall terminated Former deputy Martin Simmons is accused of hitting a 4-year-old so hard it could be heard through the wall by other children at the home.

By Sam Sachs

HALL COUNTY, Ga. — A Hall County deputy was arrested on child cruelty charges and terminated a month after his promotion to investigator.

The Oakwood Police Department said now-former Hall County Deputy Martin Simmons was under investigation for alleged criminal misconduct.

The police report says the Georgia Department of Family and Child Services reported a domestic violence incident from September to HCSO, which was then passed to Oakwood police in October.

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According to the report, other children overheard a physical assault between Simmons and a 4-year-old.

The report says that Simmons was hitting the child so hard it could be heard by other children through the wall of the room they were in.

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When a woman there tried to get in the room to stop him, Simmons would not allow her in, the report says.

Eventually, the child victim opened the door, and Simmons began yelling at them, while the woman stood between them to keep Simmons and the child from getting closer to each other, according to the report.

The child told the woman that she wanted Simmons out of the house, investigators said.

Simmons is no longer allowed contact with the child, according to the police report.

On Oct. 14, the HCSO says it dismissed Simons following the Oakwood investigation and being told about his pending arrest.

Oakwood police said they found evidence that Simmons had violated Georgia’s Family Violence Act and he was arrested for battery and cruelty to children, under the FVA.

“Simmons was hired by HCSO as a jailer in July 2023. He graduated from the police academy in September 2024 and transferred a month later to the agency’s Uniform Patrol Division,” according to the sheriff’s office. “He was promoted to the rank of investigator earlier this month and was in training for that job when he was fired.”

An Oakwood officer met Simmons at the sheriff’s office, where he was charged, then turned over to the Hall County Jail for arrest processing.

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