An arrest warrant cites security footage and employment records in the investigation involving a 15-year-old patient.
SMYRNA, Ga. — A former employee of a Smyrna mental health facility has been jailed without bond after police accused him of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old patient who had been admitted for treatment.
Jalen Pugh, 25, faces charges of sexual assault against a person with a disability, statutory rape, aggravated child molestation and sodomy. The charges stem from allegations involving a patient at Ridgeview Institute Smyrna in April, according to an arrest warrant and police accounts.
The warrant says the girl was admitted to the facility off South Cobb Drive on April 10. During the intake process, Pugh allegedly asked her inappropriate questions and made a sexually suggestive statement about what he planned to bring to work the next day.
Investigators allege Pugh returned to the facility at about 5 a.m. on April 11, two hours before his scheduled shift. Police said employment records showed that he clocked in at about that time.
The warrant accuses Pugh of entering the patient’s room and sexually assaulting her. Security cameras recorded him entering the room 10 times between about 5 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., according to investigators. The footage does not show what happened inside the room.
Smyrna Police Lt. Meredith Holt said Pugh should not have handled the girl’s intake under the facility’s usual procedures. Holt said the facility generally has female employees check in female patients and male employees check in male patients.
Two female workers had initially been handling the intake before employees switched assignments, according to accounts provided during the investigation. Police have not publicly explained why Pugh took over the process or what duties he was assigned at the facility.
The allegations were reported about a week later after the girl told another patient, who then informed a staff member, police said. Holt said the facility contacted the girl’s mother and the mother notified the Smyrna Police Department.
Investigators said Pugh no longer works at Ridgeview Institute. The facility has not publicly provided details about when or why his employment ended.
Pugh was arrested and booked into the Cobb County Jail on July 11. He remained held without bond as the criminal case moved forward. Court records available in the reports did not identify an attorney representing him or list a date for his next hearing.
Author note: Last updated July 16, 2026.