Former Truett McConnell VP indicted on felony charges of lying to investigators

A White County grand jury indicted the former vice president of a baptist university Monday on three felony counts of making false statements to law enforcement.

Bradley Reynolds was the vice president of academic affairs at Truett McConnell University until he resigned in 2024, according to the Associated Press. The university is located in the northeast Georgia town of Cleveland.

The grand jurors alleged that Reynolds lied to officials three times, regarding his relationship with a former student and later university employee.

According to the indictment, prosecutors allege Reynolds made the following false statements to sheriff’s investigator Anthony Sims during a March 2024 interview:

• Reynolds said he never had a sexual relationship with the woman.
• Reynolds denied controlling an email account that sent more than 300 emails, which were provided to investigators.
• Reynolds also denied telling the woman that his wife was going to die so that he could marry her.

The charges follow a more than yearlong investigation into Reynolds’ conduct. The 3,100-student university released a statement May 30, saying it first became aware of the allegations against Reynolds when he told the university that the White County Sheriff’s Office was investigating him for an “inappropriate relationship.” Reynolds’s employment ended within days, the university said.

The university removed its president in September. President Emir Caner was placed on leave in June while the university investigated claims that he ignored allegations of abuse. John Yarbrough will be the interim president, according to the AP.

Marcia Shein, the woman’s attorney, told Now Habersham that her client is grateful that District Attorney Jeff Langley reopened the case into Reynolds after investigators had concluded there wasn’t enough evidence to pursue criminal charges.

“Now we’ll just let the justice system proceed,” she said.