This story was originally published byThe Imprint, a national nonprofit news outlet covering child welfare and youth justice. Sign up for The Imprint’s free newslettershere.
Nearly a year after his arrest, the husband of Georgia’s child welfare agency director has pleaded not guilty to driving under the influence and child endangerment charges.
Jason Broce waived a formal arraignment and entered the plea in Bartow County Superior Court on Sept. 17, Bartow County public records show.
Since Broce’s arrest last year, two additional child endangerment charges have been added to the original two, according to online court records. The criminal complaint was amended on Aug. 8.
The misdemeanor charges, which stem from Broce’s arrest last October, also include a hit-and-run allegation. He is accused of fleeing the scene after striking another vehicle while driving intoxicated in his F-150 truck. His children, aged 5 and 8, were in the car at the time, according to a police report. Broce’s attorney and the Division of Family and Children Services did not respond to requests for comment by press time.
The driver who reported the hit-and-run told 911 dispatchers that the fleeing driver seemed “impaired.’’ Responding officers located the F-150 on the road and reported witnessing Broce drifting between lanes. After approaching him at a gas station he’d pulled into, they reported that he “smelled of alcohol’’ and was “unsteady on his feet.’’
Broce failed a field sobriety test and a preliminary breath test with a blood alcohol level of .333 — four times the legal limit in Georgia. A blood alcohol level higher than .3 is considered a life-threatening condition for “most drinkers,” according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
Broce is the founder of Terminus South, a government relations firm, and previously served as a campaign policy advisor to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. He is married to Candice Broce, commissioner of Georgia’s Department of Human Services and director of its Division of Family and Children Services. Kemp appointed her in 2021.
The state’s child welfare agency has refused to answer questions about the case, including whether it opened an investigation into the Broce family.
Larry Kohn, an Atlanta criminal defense attorney who works on DUI cases, previously told The Imprint that potential penalties for Broce could include jail time, fines, community service and completion of a substance use program.
After Broce’s arrest, parent attorneys questioned whether the family was receiving the same scrutiny from child welfare and law enforcement officials as other families in similar circumstances have. In November, an agency spokesperson said reports made about department employees are referred to “an impartial, independent reviewer” to avoid conflicts of interest.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Husband of welfare director pleads not guilty to DUI with kids in car
