GAINESVILLE, Ga. – Prosecutors say a former Habersham County deputy sheriff depended on a brand new informant to get a warrant for a drug raid that injured a toddler when a flash grenade detonated in his pen.
The Gainesville Times reports (http://bit.ly/1ISBCET ) that a defense attorney for Nikki Autry says she trusted the informant's information. Attorney Jeff Brickman also stressed that Autry didn't make decisions alone after the warrant was issued.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys delivered opening statements in the case Tuesday. Autry has pleaded not guilty to providing false information to get a warrant.
Authorities have said 19-month-old Bounkham Phonesavanh (BOON'-kahm fohn-SAH'-vahn) was critically injured when the device landed in his playpen during the May 2014 raid on the northeast Georgia home. The grenade blew Phonesavanh's chest and face open, burning him.
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