Bond denied in aggravated sexual battery case

Nov. 28—Conasauga Judicial Circuit Judge Scott Minter denied an attorney's motion to set bond for a man accused of aggravated sexual battery in Whitfield Superior Court on Tuesday, Nov. 21.

Defendant Victor Lamont Harrison, 47, was represented by public defender Micah Gates during Tuesday's proceedings. Representing the State was Conasauga Judicial Circuit Assistant District Attorney Christina Antalis.

Gates requested that Harrison's bond be set at $25,000.

"He's lived in this area for well over a decade," Gates told the court. "He has six children, only one of them's under 18."

Gates said Georgia Crime Information Center (GCIC) data indicate Harrison has a previous conviction for possession.

Antalis, however, said the defendant has two felony convictions, including a Georgia Controlled Substances Act violation from 1998 out of Floyd County.

"The second was a 2005 offense date, he was convicted in 2007 for the offense of felony possession of marijuana with intent to distribute," Antalis continued. "As well as a misdemeanor fleeing to elude, that was in Bartow County."

She said Harrison was sentenced to 10 years for the Bartow County conviction.

"Prior to his fleeing conviction in the 2005 case, two bench warrants were issued in that case," she continued. "During the term of that probation, his sentence was tolled between March 10, 2008, and Sept. 16, 2008, for his failure to report."

The alleged victim in the aggravated sexual battery case, she said, is 17 years old.

"Given the serious nature of his offense, we do consider him a risk to reoffend and a risk to the victim," she said. "And we do oppose bond."

According to Whitfield County Sheriff's Office data, Harrison has been held in pretrial detention at the local jail since Nov. 2, 2023.