Two former Franklin police officers arrested in wake of TBI investigation

Two former Franklin police officers were arrested this week for misconduct and misuse of information, according to a news release from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Former Franklin police officer Britton Cornell, 25, was arrested Wednesday and former Franklin police officer, Ryan Dugger, 25, turned himself in Thursday following an investigation that found the former officers had used the Criminal Justice Portal System for excessive inquiries on their days off and after hours.

TBI began investigating allegations of misuse of information against Cornell and Dugger, on April 26. Cornell and Dugger were officers at the time of the investigation.

Between January and April of this year, Cornell and Dugger had used the Criminal Justice Portal System for excessive inquiries on their days off and after hours, according to the investigation.

Dugger and Cornell resigned from their jobs as Franklin police officers in the midst of the investigation, according to a news release from the Franklin Police Department. Dugger resigned in March and Cornell resigned in April.

Following that resignation, the Franklin Police Department requested that the State of Tennessee Peace Officers Standards Training Commission (POST) decertify Cornell and Dugger, which will keep them from working as police officers anywhere in Tennessee. The ruling by POST is still pending.

On Dec. 4, the Williamson County Grand Jury returned indictments charging Cornell and Dugger , each with one count of official misconduct and one count of official misuse of information.

Cornell was arrested Wednesday and booked into the Williamson County Jail on a $5,000 bond.

Dugger turned himself in on Thursday morning. He was also booked into the Williamson County Jail, on a $5,000 bond.

The Franklin Police Department routinely audits queries that officers make of law enforcement databases, according to a news release.

Cornell and Dugger were flagged in one of those audits after it was determined they were querying information with no relevance to matters under investigation by Franklin Police.

Franklin Police Chief Deborah Faulkner ordered an administrative investigation into the matter, then asked 21st District Attorney General Kim Helper to request a TBI review.

"Franklin Police Officers depend on and value the trust of our citizens," Faulkner said in a statement. "Violating that trust is never an option.”

Reach Melanie Balakit at mbalakit@tennessean.com.