CLARKESVILLE, Ga. – Habersham County officials are seeking answers about how the local school police department is issuing $1000 tickets in the county’s name on an expired, decades-old contract with the vendor.
County officials tell Now Georgia they can find no record showing commissioners approved a 2016 agreement now being used to support the school bus stop-arm camera program. Habersham County Manager Tim Sims says the county does not even have a copy of the underlying vendor contract on file.
“…I would like to understand how the School Board Police Chief was able to reinstate or continue the contract without obtaining the required approval from all of the entities identified in the agreement.” – Habersham County Manager Tim Sims
The discovery deepens questions about citations from Habersham County Schools Police that carry the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office’s Originating Agency Identifier (ORI) and county government seal, even though Sheriff Robin Krockum says his agency is not reviewing, approving, or issuing the tickets. In fact, Krockum said he only recently became aware the school system was handing out tickets in his agency’s name after someone who received one asked him about it.
‘No records’ on file
After spending Monday researching the program, Sims told Now Georgia he still could not determine how the current arrangement was authorized.
“There are no records of this being approved by the Board of Commissioners at a meeting in 2016 nor a copy of the contract with the vendor in our files,” Sims said.
Sims previously said the original Gatekeeper contract appeared to have already expired and questioned how the program could have continued without renewal.
“If that is the case, I would like to understand how the School Board Police Chief was able to reinstate or continue the contract without obtaining the required approval from all of the entities identified in the agreement,” Sims said.
The original agreement
The 2016 Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) names Habersham County, Habersham County Schools and the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO). It assigns the law-enforcement portion of the camera program to HCSO, requiring qualified deputies or personnel to review recorded violations and make the final determination of whether to issue a citation. The Habersham County School Police Department was not assigned any role in that agreement. The department was not active at the time and, even today, questions remain about whether it is a legitimate law enforcement agency.
A citation provided to Now Georgia by a complaining Habersham resident identifies school police officer Victoria Hopper as the reviewing officer. The citation carries HCSO’s Originating Agency Identifier (ORI) and the county seal, but Krockum says his agency had no role in approving or issuing it.
Krockum also said his office has received complaints about the citations and is looking into the program. He said he is unaware of the contested citations going through the county court system.
Sims said county administration likewise knew nothing about the agreement until Now Georgia began asking questions.
“I was not aware of any contract nor the IGA that you shared with us,” Sims said.
Previous complaints were sent to school system
Sims said a county commissioner had previously received a complaint from a citizen questioning whether a school bus citation was legitimate. The citizen was referred to the school board, and Sims said county officials heard nothing further.
Baldwin Police Chief Chris Jones described a nearly identical encounter.
“The citizen was concerned about the citation, whether it was legit or not,” Jones said. “I reached out to Murray [Kogod] via text, and he stated that it was a legit citation. No further contact was made.”
Jones said he was unaware of the agreement itself.
Current municipal police chiefs across Habersham have now told Now Georgia they were either unaware of the program’s enforcement agreement or had not been contacted about participating in an updated one.
“I have not heard anything about this program at all,” Demorest Police Chief Casey Chastain said.
Alto Police Chief Sean Rogers said his agency had not heard from Habersham Schools Chief of Police Murray Kogod or anyone else regarding the issue, although he supports the program’s public-safety purpose.
Clarkesville Police Chief Danny Clouatre said he knew buses could capture images of motorists passing stopped school buses, but not how those images were being used for enforcement.
“I was aware that school buses have the capability to capture video or photographs of vehicles that fail to stop when required for students,” Clouatre said. “However, I am not involved in that process and was not aware of how that information was used.”
Cornelia Police Chief Johnathan Roberts also said he received no correspondence regarding the program and was unaware of the agreement governing it.
Revisiting the arrangement
Habersham County Schools acknowledged Friday that it is now revisiting the arrangement.
“We are in the process of updating the Intergovernmental Agreement with Gatekeeper Systems, Inc for the Student Protector System to reflect changes in the law and changes in law enforcement leadership within the county, cities and Board of Education,” the district said. “We are also working with local elected officials to ensure a clear and concise process for all to follow.”
Sims, however, said no one had contacted county administration about that process.
“No, I have not received any information on this nor has anyone reached out to the County to discuss this program,” he said.
Sims said any new agreement would have to be reviewed by the county attorney and placed before commissioners for approval.
Tens of thousands of dollars in fines
Records from RS Ticket Processing covering January 2024 through August 2026 list $29,000 in penalties and $1,450 in processing fees. Recent $1,050 payments show Gatekeeper receiving $550 — the entire $50 processing fee plus half of the $1,000 penalty — while $500 goes to the school district.
Sims said the county would not ordinarily expect citation revenue when a county officer did not issue the ticket. But he added one qualification.
“If they would continue to want to use our ORI, then it may warrant another look at sharing the revenue with us,” Sims said. “The ultimate goal is the safety of the children though!”
Habersham County Schools still has not answered Now Georgia’s questions about whether it will cancel existing citations or refund paid tickets issued under an expired contract, bearing another agency’s identifier and a county seal used without consent.
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