Man busted for DUI after officer warned him not to drive

Published 9:36 pm Monday, July 3, 2017

A man was arrested in the wee hours of Sunday morning for DUI-less safe and failure to maintain minimum insurance.

A police officer working a security shift at Waffle House on New Franklin Road witnessed a black 1993 Ford Ranger drive into the parking lot, and two passengers got out of the vehicle. Once in the restaurant, the driver began to speak inappropriately to waitresses and the waitresses asked the police officer to say something to the man, according to the police report.

When the officer spoke to the man, he noticed a strong smell of alcohol. After a few minutes, he went back to have another conversation with him. He asked the man how many beers he’d had and he replied “a bunch.” The officer advised the man to contact someone else to pick him up and not to make any attempts to get back in the truck and drive away. Minutes later the officer witnessed the man exit the restaurant and enter the driver’s side of the truck.

Another officer pulled into the parking lot and made contact with the man, who did not have valid insurance. Officers also learned his driver’s licenses were suspended for DUI.

Items stolen from car

A woman had more than $800 in items stolen from her car on Saturday afternoon on the 300 block of Johnson Street.

The woman said she and three others were traveling together when they parked in order to go inside a nearby restaurant. They placed her purse, a Michael Kors, in the trunk, and went inside. One of the other friends traveling in the vehicle placed their cell phone in the purse as well.

The front passenger window was busted out and trunk was released that way, according to the police report. Several items were stolen, including the purse (valued at $350), cash (totaling $350) and a MetroPCS ZT Pro cellphone (valued at $148). A key to DDS on Dallis Street and a social security number were also taken, according to the report.

A few minutes later — around 2:58 p.m. — officers found a man who fit the description of the subject from the entering auto that had just occurred. The suspect freely admitted to leaving that area recently and when asked about the entering auto incident, he ran from officers down Jarboe Street toward Hamilton Road. Officers chased him down Brookside Terrance and Union Street, where they lost sight of him.

According to the report, the man, 28, was later arrested.

Male accidentally shoots himself on Turner Street

A man accidentally shot himself Sunday afternoon at Tall Pine Apartments.

At first the man told police he and his sister were standing in the parking lot in front of the E building of the Tall Pine Apartments Sunday afternoon when a car pulled up and began shooting. The male said the front seat passenger and back seat passenger each were shooting in his direction and he and his sister began to run. He said he didn’t realize he was shot in the left thigh until they had run away from the scene.

Later in the investigation, he admitted he had accidentally shot himself in the leg with a .38 caliber handgun and had made up the incident, according to the police report. He said he was standing there with a friend, who owned the gun, and played with it and accidentally fired it.

He then asked his sister to take him to the hospital.

House on Mason Street burglarized

A woman said she was sleeping in her home on the 900 block of Mason Street Sunday morning when an unknown person came in through her ceiling and stole several items.

Police responded to the address at 3:49 a.m. The victim said she is missing a purse, clothing and furniture, along with other personal items. The woman believes the person in through the dining room and said this was an ongoing problem. No value was given for the items taken.

Police are investigating.

Man arrested for public drunkenness

A man was arrested Saturday night at Los Nopales for public drunkenness and disorderly conduct.

The man allegedly pulled a knife on another customer. The man, 56, had two pocket knives on his person when police arrived. Employees of the restaurant just wanted the man to leave and had already called a taxi for him.

Officers spoke to the customers who allegedly had a knife pulled at them. They said the man was heavily intoxicated and stood beside them and screamed he was a University of Georgia fan. The man asked who they supported and they shrugged him off, according to the report.

Video footage from the restaurant backs up what the witnesses said, according to the report.

Officers obtained a copy of the man’s receipt from the evening. He had consumed nine shots of Jose Cuervo and two Long Island Iced Teas while inside the restaurant.

The man was transported by AMR to Wellstar West Georgia and was unable to sign his citations due to his level of intoxication.

Man allegedly arrested for driving

unlicensed, gave police fake name

The LaGrange Police Department arrested a man after he was pulled over for several traffic violations, gave a fake name and had three active warrants.

Officers observed the man traveling north on Whitesville Street in a green Honda Accord. He slowed down and almost stopped in the middle of the road Saturday around 2:20 a.m. Then, he took an abrupt left turn across two lanes of traffic without using a signal.

Officers pulled him over and the driver quickly exited the vehicle. A Georgia temporary tag was in the car’s rear view mirror, but the driver would not give officers his license and changed the subject when he was asked, according to the report.

The only thing the man would tell officers is that he was 37 years old. The man said he didn’t know his birthdate other than he was 37. Officers quickly identified the man as a 27-year-old with a completely different name than the one he gave officers. He had a failure to appear charge in Coweta County, where he was charged with larceny. The passenger said he was not supposed to drive after night and believed the driver had a license. He called a relative, who arrived at the scene to take the passenger home.

All information in this report is gathered from official law enforcement and public safety reports and releases. It is the policy of the Daily News to list the names of people charged with felonies.