After her arrest for obstructing or hindering a law enforcement officer, Patti Reed sued DeKalb County, Sergeant L. C. Golar, and Captain J. E. Pearson, Sr. for false arrest, false imprisonment, and malicious prosecution. The trial court determined that sovereign immunity barred Reed’s tort claims against the county and found that official immunity foreclosed the claims against the two police officers. In this appeal, Reed contends that questions of disputed material fact remain for jury resolution on her claims against the officers.1 On appeal from a grant of summary judgment, this court reviews the evidence de novo and considers the evidence and all reasonable conclusions and inferences therefrom in a light most favorable to the nonmovant. Matjoulis v. Integon Gen. Ins. Corp. , 226 Ga. App. 459 1 486 SE2d 684 1997. So viewed, the evidence shows that on March 28, 2000, DeKalb County Police Detective Golar was dispatched to Atherton Elementary School to respond to a complaint that a student had brought a weapon to school. While Golar was completing his paperwork on the incident, two female students were brought to the assistant principal’s office for fighting. Golar testified that “one of the female students had a patch of hair missing and a bloody scalp. I told Ms. Mapp the assistant principal that the two students were going to be arrested.” Golar testified that when Mapp telephoned Reed, the principal at Atherton Elementary, Mapp learned that Reed “did not want anyone to go to jail.” Golar and Mapp began doing the paperwork for the arrests and Mapp contacted the girls’ parents. While Golar was inside Mapp’s office speaking with the mother of one of the girls, Reed arrived and announced, “no one is going to jail because I am the principal and I decide who is going to jail.” When Reed refused to allow Golar to arrest the two students, Golar requested assistance from a supervisor. Captain J. E. Pearson, Sr. then a lieutenant, proceeded to Atherton Elementary where he interviewed Golar and Reed separately. Pearson testified that Reed “told me that she had locked Sgt. Golar out of Ms. Mapp’s office; that she had taken a handcuffed juvenile away from Sgt. Golar and into her own office; that she closed the door on Sgt. Golar; and that she did not want the two juveniles to go to Juvenile.” Pearson testified that Reed’s account of events “was essentially the same as that related to me by Sgt. Golar.” After completing his own assessment of the situation, Pearson “confirmed to Reed that she was under arrest and that she would be transported to Police Headquarters.” Pearson informed an assistant school superintendent that Reed “was going to be arrested based on her actions.” Another officer transported the two students to juvenile court. Pearson took custody of Reed.
Later that same day, Golar obtained a criminal warrant charging Reed with “hindering the arrest of two students for fighting and closing a door on the officer’s foot and arm.” A handwritten entry indicates the warrant was dismissed on March 30. Gwendolyn R. Keyes, the Solicitor General of DeKalb County, conducted an independent review of the criminal case against Reed. Keyes testified that “my review of the file convinced me that the officers had probable cause to arrest Plaintiff for the obstruction of an officer as he attempted to arrest a minor at the school. My review convinced me that this was a case wherein there was sufficient evidence to draw an accusation and proceed with the criminal prosecution of Plaintiff.” To avert criminal prosecution, Keyes held a meeting in her office on April 12, attended by Golar, Pearson, Reed, Reed’s attorneys, school board members and their counsel, and members of the Department of Public Safety. Keyes testified: In that meeting, those present discussed and signed a Consent Agreement relating to a clarification of the policy regarding arrests on school property. The Consent Agreement provided that the state would not proceed against Plaintiff criminally if the policy regarding arrests on school property had been clarified by August 15, 2000. In a May 25th letter, Keyes advised Reed that she need not appear for arraignment in June. Keyes testified that meanwhile, unbeknownst to her, “an Assistant Solicitor in my office conducted an independent investigation and determined that there was probable cause to draw an accusation on the criminal charge against Plaintiff.” Unaware of the negotiated agreement, this assistant solicitor drafted a two-count accusation against Reed. After discovering the mistake, on July 5, Keyes sought and obtained a nolle prosequi order for those charges, stating “this case was filed in error.” Keyes explained that the criminal prosecution undertaken by her office was “simply an oversight of which I was unaware at the time, resulting from an absence of communication.”
