Houston County EMA director placed on leave, 2 arrested in dispatch probe
Houston County EMA Director Chris Judah is on paid administrative leave while two people were arrested as part of an investigation into a breach of the county’s dispatching system.
The Dothan News is reporting Judah was placed on leave by the Houston County Commission after an emergency meeting.
Shortly after, Dothan police announced the arrests of Jesse Ryan Taylor, 40, and Amy Johnson Granberry, 43, both of Dothan.
The investigation apparently deals with unauthorized access to the county’s central dispatch system, which is used by the Houston County Sheriff’s Office, Dothan police and the Houston County EMA.
Taylor is an EMA contractor and an employee of a local news blog, Rickey Stokes News, while Granberry is the assistant communication director with the City of Dothan’s Communications Center.
Both are charged with 12 counts of computer tampering.
Houston County Commission chairman Brandon Shoupe said he was not saying saying Judah did anything illegal.
“I want to be clear about that,” he said. “But given the circumstances, we felt it would be best to place him on admin leave until we can further determine the facts.”
Taylor is a former Dothan firefighter and was out on bond for a theft of property charge after he was accused of stealing fentanyl from a Dothan fire station. He is now being held without bond.
Granberry’s bond was set at $180,000 and she has been placed on administrative leave.