When a man illegally planted drugs on a Murray County woman a year and half ago, a federal prosecutor said, he did so to please one of the county judges.
Clifford “C.J.” Joyce, 27, appeared in the U.S. District Court in Rome on Dec. 13 for a sentencing hearing. Six months earlier, Joyce pleaded guilty to felony conspiracy charges because of his role in framing Angela Garmley.
On Aug. 12, 2012, Joyce placed five packets of methamphetamine inside a metal tin. Then, he placed that metal tin near one of the tires on Garmley’s car. Two days later, a deputy and a captain from the Murray County Sheriff’s Office pulled Garmley over and arrested her.
Since the day of the arrest, Murray County Chief Magistrate Bryant Cochran has been linked to the crime. In April 2012, Garmely asked him to take out a warrant against three men who beat her up. During that meeting, she said, Cochran asked her to be his mistress. He would continue to harass her after that, she said.
As a result, the Georgia Judicial Qualifications Commission investigated Cochran for ethics violations. In the meantime, Joyce planted the drugs on Garmley’s car. At that point, Joyce lived in a trailer park that Cochran owned.