Offender Name

James Michael Duncan

Offender E-mail

none listed

Offender Phone Number

none listed

Offenders Last Known Address

Iron Gate subdivision, Bulloch County Georgia

Supporting Evidence - arrest records

Details of the offence here
Warrants filed against a K9 handler and dog trainer arrested by the Bulloch County Sheriff’s Office shed more light on why the K9 deputy is facing animal cruelty charges. 

James Michael Duncan was arrested on January 27 on eight counts of misdemeanor Cruelty to Animals. Duncan’s arrest was not connected to his employment at the Candler County Sheriff’s Office, but a review of his POST file indicates this was not his first run-in with the law. 

Animal cruelty becomes a felony if a person maliciously causes the death of an animal, maliciously causes harm to the extent that the animal is dismembered or has a body part rendered useless, maliciously tortures an animal and subjects them to prolonged or severe pain, a person poisons an animal with malice, or when a person withholds food, water, sanitary conditions and the like and it also results in the death or serious disfiguration of the animal. The felony offense is punishable by one to five years in prison and up to $15,000 in fines.

Warrants Filed Against Duncan

Each of the warrants outline that Duncan was in control of the animals at the time of the offense – listed as January 22, 2026 – at a home in the Iron Gate subdivision. Public records indicate the home is not owned by Duncan. 

The warrants also state that Duncan deprived the animals of adequate food, water, sanitary conditions, or ventilation, as outlined in the misdemeanor code section – OCGA 16-12-4(b).

Each warrant lists a separate animal located during the investigation, including one German Shepherd mix, a Rottweiler mix, three German Shepherds, and three Plott Hounds. Each of the animals were removed from the premises by the Bulloch County Sheriff’s Office and/or Bulloch County Animal Control. 

Duncan was booked into the Bulloch County Jail and released the same day on $10,000 bond, as is standard with misdemeanor offenses.

The case will be adjudicated in Bulloch County State Court and Duncan’s scheduled to appear in court in mid-March. As of publishing, Duncan had no listed attorney. 

The charges stem from Duncan’s private venture and not his work with the Candler County Sheriff’s Office.

Since 2019, Duncan has operated a private dog training company – Southern Edge K9 – which operated out of a different property in Bulloch County. Records with the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office show 2024 as the last year the company was registered with the state before it was administratively dissolved. Until 2024, the business listed Duncan as the CEO and Joey Coty as the business CFO. In 2024, Coty was removed from the business filings.

The Google business listing now shows the business as ‘permanently closed.’ All social media accounts with Southern Edge K9 were deleted shortly before Duncan’s arrest, though tags of the business page on Facebook and social media remain and show his tenure of work in various counties.

Terminations and POST Disciplinary Action 

According to records from the Georgia Peace Officer Standards & Training Council (POST), Duncan obtained his POST certification in 2000 and has worked in law enforcement off and on since that time. He’s been employed by the Bulloch County Sheriff’s Office, the Millen Police Department in Jenkins County, the Wadley Police Department in Jefferson County, the Evans County Sheriff’s Office, the Screven County Sheriff’s Office, and, most recently, the Candler County Sheriff’s Office. 

Resigned in Lieu of Termination from the Bulloch County Sheriff’s Office 

POST records show Duncan worked for the Bulloch County Sheriff’s Office from 2001 to 2003.

After a 22 month hiatus, Duncan was hired by the Millen Police Department where he worked for four months until he was hired by the Wadley Police Department in April 2005. Duncan was employed with Wadley for ten months.

Latest Employment 

POST records show that Duncan was out of law enforcement for approximately thirteen years. In May 2024, he was hired by Candler County as a ‘Reserve Officer.’ After his arrest, the Candler County Sheriff’s Office said Dunan had been “suspended pending the outcome.”

As seen in The Georgia Virtue: https://www.thegeorgiavirtue.com/local-news-south-georgia/warrants-shed-light-on-details-of-k9-deputy-charged-with-animal-cruelty/

Submitted by a verified reporter