Cherokee Schedules New Sentencing Date for Former Cobb Officer

A former Cobb police officer who tried to cover up the death of a fellow officer will be sentenced next week, the Cherokee County District Attorney's Office said today.

Kenneth Reda, a former Cobb SWAT team member from Paulding County, was for his role in an off-duty boating accident that killed Sgt. Brent Stephens last April.

But logistical issues forced officials to postpone the hearing until Jan. 27 at 10 a.m.

According to police, a 22-foot “shore boat” driven by Reda, 38, hit a navigational buoy on April 22, 2010. The impact knocked Stephens into the dark waters of Lake Allatoona. Shelley Powell, Reda's 37-year-old girlfriend, was on board at the time of the accident.

After an unsuccessful attempt to locate Stephens, Reda cleaned up the boat, threw beer bottles into a trash bag, took his girlfriend to shore with the bag and a cooler, then called 911, police said.

Upon calling, he said the accident had just happened; he and Stephens were the only ones on the boat; there was no alcohol on the boat; and that Stephens, also a Cobb SWAT team member, might have jumped in the water as a joke.

A search-and-rescue effort spanned into the following afternoon when Stephens’ body was found. A few days later, Reda and his girlfriend were arrested.

Reda pleaded guilty in Cherokee County Superior Court on Jan. 12 to second-degree homicide by vessel, tampering with evidence, three counts of making false statements and violation of office by a public officer.

Records show Powell, of Acworth, was also charged in the incident with being untruthful to law enforcement.

The maximum sentence Reda could receive is 23 years in state prison and 12 months in jail, according to court documents.

Reda resigned from his post in May.