A Democrat nominee for the Georgia State Senate is heading to prison after a judge found him guilty of cruelty to children and battery for striking a 5-year-old girl at a daycare.
Justin Grant Gillespie, 41, of Hull, was sentenced last week to seven years, with two years to serve in state prison. The rest will be served on probation. He remains in the Madison County Jail.
According to the Athens Banner-Herald, Gillespie was convicted in a bench trial before Madison County Superior Court Judge Chris NeSmith. The charges stemmed from a Feb. 1, 2021, incident at Happy Kids Learning Center in Hull, where Gillespie worked.
Authorities said he hit the child in the lower back with a spatula, leaving a red, raised welt. The girl told investigators Gillespie was mad at her for not taking a nap. Gillespie admitted swinging the spatula but claimed he was on the phone and did not realize the child was standing nearby.
The parents discovered the wound and reported it to the Madison County Sheriff’s Office. Charges were filed in March 2021. The case dragged on for more than five years.
Gillespie showed up for a jury trial, fired his lawyer that day, hired another attorney, and chose a bench trial instead. During testimony from the victim’s family, Gillespie was seen rolling his eyes. The judge factored that conduct into the sentence, according to Northern Circuit District Attorney Parks White, as reported by 92.1 WLHR.
