All charges have been dismissed against Ralph Cowart, Co-Owner of Southern Manor at Candler Senior Living, and Meghan McCullough, CEO of Southern Manor at Candler Senior Living, which was confirmed by their attorneys Matt Hube and Keith Barber.
Neither Hube nor Barber would elaborate on the reasons the charges were dismissed and said their clients, Cowart and McCullough, would not be releasing an additional statement. They both referred us to statements they released after a Candler County Jury returned a True Bill of Indictment on four charges in December of 2023.
The charges were dismissed on March 6, 2024, when Middle Judicial Circuit Judge Tommy Smith signed the Order for Dismissal presented to him by the Middle Judicial Court District Attorney Tripp Fitzner's office. No reason for dismissal was included in the court filings.
December Statements
"Mr. Cowart has dedicated his entire career to providing the highest quality care to the residents of the facilities he owns and operates. His actions related to this matter were taken to protect the well-being of the residents and staff of Southern Manor at Candler," said Mr. Cowart's attorney Matt Hube in December. "We look forward to appearing in court where we feel strongly that Mr. Cowart will be fully exonerated."
"I would just like for everyone to wait until all the evidence comes out in this case to form an opinion as to what did or did not happen. I am very confident and have no doubt when all the facts are known that Mrs. McCullough will be totally exonerated in this matter," said Meghan McCullough's attorney Keith Barber.
GBI Initial Media Release
On August 1, 2023, in a release from the GBI stated that they had arrested and charged Ralph Cowart, age 37, of Statesboro, GA, and Meghan McCullough, age 36, of Statesboro, GA, with elder abuse/disabled adult charges stemming from an incident that occurred at Southern Manor at Candler, an assisted living facility co-owned by Cowart. McCullough is the Executive Director of the facility.
On June 30, 2023, the Candler County Sheriff’s Office asked the GBI to investigate an incident involving a resident at the facility being removed from the property.
When the initial story broke, a large number of citizens weighed in on social media expressing their shock and disbelief. The social media comments shared a common theme of personal stories of how both Mr. Cowart and Mrs. McCullough had touched their lives with their extraordinary, compassionate care that they personally and their team had provided to loved ones through the years.
A call to both Southern Manor facilities in Statesboro and Metter on Thursday requesting a census count revealed that both facilities were full.