Unknown male shoplifts from Walmart
On Feb. 18, law enforcement dispatched to Aldi Food Market, 1978 N. Columbia St., in reference to shoplifting. Manager Joann Yakubowski stated a cashier noticed a male walking past the last point of sale holding a large bag full of product. The cashier heard the shoplifting alarm go off as the man exited. Yakubowski further advised she approximated the value of items stolen at $50, but she was unsure. The cashier also observed the male leaving with a large white Aldi freezer bag. The cashier did not know when he came in, nor did she recognize him as a regular customer.
Camera footage showed a black male with a goatee, wearing white shoes, gray pants, a white hoodie, and a black beanie enter the location before being seen on aisle three with a white bag. The male can be seen taking items off the shelves and placing them in the bag. The male disappears into the store again, and then can be seen picking up the bag and exiting the location. Footage showed the male’s pants appear to be full with possible merchandise inside. The camera footage was blurry, so a clear shot of the male’s face could not be taken. As of The Baldwin Bulletin’s deadline, the staff did not have a total dollar value of what was taken.
Drunk driver hits parked vehicle
On Feb. 21, law enforcement was dispatched to an accident at 530 North Irwin Street. The victim, James McManmon, advised a male subject knocked on his door and informed him that he struck his vehicle. McManmon stated the subject left his driver’s license and told him he will be back. The male subject, later identified as Carl Murray, returned on scene. When asked where he left, he stated he went a couple houses down to put his gun inside the residence. Murray advised officers on scene that he struck the 2021 silver Toyota Tacoma while driving southbound on Irwin Street. Murray told McManmon he would pay for the car. Due to Murray’s slurred speech and watery eyes, he was asked to submit to field sobriety testing to which he refused. He also refused to submit to testing. Murray was transported to Baldwin County Law Enforcement Center for driving under the influence of alcohol.
Man caught stealing from Walmart
On Feb. 21, law enforcement was dispatched to Walmart, on 2592 N.
Columbia St., in reference to shoplifting.
Dispatch advised that the suspect was last seen walking in front of Goodwill.
An officer stopped the suspect, who was identified as Dennis Norris, in front of Goodwill. Norris admitted that he exited the last point of sale with items he did not pay for but stated that he returned them when approached by Loss Prevention staff. He further advised that he was waiting for his wife to pick him up so he could take the items home to feed his family. Before being taken into custody, Norris confirmed that he acted alone.
Walmart Loss Prevention stated Norris stole two beef ribeye steaks, four tomahawk steaks, Downy fabric softener, cotton tissue, a Reese’s candy pack, Gain liquid detergent, Tide liquid detergent, and Bounty paper towels. The total value of the merchandise was $541.82.
Surveillance footage showed Norris walking around the store and placing various items into a shopping cart. After finishing his selection, he proceeded toward the exit, looked around briefly, and then walked past the last point of sale without making any attempt to purchase the items. Upon exiting the store with the unpaid merchandise, he was approached by Walmart Loss Prevention staff and returned the items without incident. A warrant was issued for felony theft by shoplifting on Dennis Norris.
Drunk man almost collides with patrol car On Feb. 22, Deputy Dawson Smith advised over the radio that the driver of a vehicle traveling beside his patrol car was failing to maintain the proper lane of travel. Smith stated that the other vehicle almost collided with his patrol car. Stephen Hutto responded to the immediate area and observed the vehicle failing to maintain a single lane of travel. The driver of the van came to a stop in the middle of State Route 29 Bypass, near North Glynn Street.
Officers attempted to speak with the driver but there was a language barrier.
Hutto reported the driver's eyes to be glossy, that he had slurred speech, and there was an odor of an unknown alcoholic beverage coming from his person. Milledgeville Sergeant Maine Chambers arrived and attempted to translate for the driver, identified as Kendel Garcia. Garcia denied drinking any alcoholic beverages prior to driving. Garcia provided a sufficient portable breathalyzer sample with a result of 0.194 BAC. Garcia was placed under arrest for suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. Hutto gave dispatch Garcia’s information, which returned with no driver found in G.C.I.C. Hutto read Garcia the implied consent from his state issued green card, but due to the language barrier, Garcia was unable to answer.
At that time, Chambers had to leave the scene to respond to an emergency call and was no longer available to translate.
Garcia received citations for driving under the influence of alcohol, failure to maintain a single lane, and driving without a valid license.
Drunk driver refuses to cooperate
On Feb 22, while on patrol in the area of North Columbia Street and Marshall Road, an officer observed a white Chevrolet Malibu failing to maintain its lane of travel. He conducted a traffic stop just north of Hillside Drive on North Columbia Street. The vehicle slowed down as if it was going to turn right toward Little Tokyo, but instead turned left crossing over all lanes of travel to the entrance of Robins Financial Credit Union. The driver started to pull into a parking spot, then made a sudden turn away from the parking area before coming to a complete stop. The driver, identified as Jamaal Waller, stated he left Legends. During the initial conversation with Waller, the officer smelled the odor of an unknown alcoholic beverage coming from his person and observed his eyes to be bloodshot and glossy. Waller stated that he had not consumed any alcohol.
Waller exited his vehicle and was reportedly unsteady on his feet. Despite being asked multiple times, he did not consent to a Standardized Field Sobriety Tests.
Waller would not answer whether he would consent to a roadside breath test.
He continued to argue on the “whys” of not taking either but stated he was not refusing doing either. Waller was transported to the jail without incident and received citations for driving under the influence refusal, failure to drive within a single lane and driving while license is suspended.
Drunk driver rests off the road
On Feb. 23, while on patrol in the area of North Columbia Street, an officer observed a vehicle parked in the parking lot of Bolt Storage, at 2971 B N. Columbia St., during closing hours. The vehicle was parked in front of the business, very close to the building and was still running.
The officer observed a female asleep in the driver's seat. The female appeared to be breathing so the officer requested the assistance of another unit to box in the vehicle and prevent her from driving away. Deputy Dawson Smith arrived on scene and the vehicle was boxed in. After several seconds of knocking on the window, and shining a flashlight in the female's face, she sat up and rolled down the window.
The driver was reportedly “confused and shaken up.” The female's eyes were bloodshot and glossy, and there was an odor of an unknown alcoholic beverage coming from within the vehicle, according to the report. The female, later identified as Joy Trawick, stated that she was okay and was sleeping. Trawick stated she drove there from Warner Robins and knew where she was. She admitted to consuming approximately three or four shots of Don Julio tequila prior to driving. Trawick also admitted that she smoked marijuana prior to driving. She reportedly was trying to drive home when she decided to pull over at the storage units to sleep off the intoxication because she deemed herself unfit to drive. Trawick consented to a standardized field sobriety test and was deemed unsafe to drive. She also consented to a test on the Georgia Model Intoxilizer 9000 and tested positive for alcohol with a breath alcohol content of 0.091 grams. Trawick received citations for driving under the influence of alcohol and open container.