Police blotter

Neighborhood chase ends in crash, arrest of teenager

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A 16-year-old from Evans was sent to the Regional Youth Detention Center on Monday after a vehicle chase through a neighborhood ended in a crash.

Columbia County sheriff's Deputy R.P. Brockman attempted to stop the 1994 Dodge Ram pickup about 7:45 p.m. because the teen was driving without headlights, according to a police report.

The driver, a resident of the 4600 block of Walnut Hill Drive, instead led the deputy on a brief chase through the streets of Northwoods and Chimney Hill subdivisions, the report said.

The driver lost control of the truck on a curve in the 700 block of Sparkleberry Road, crashing into an electrical transformer box, a cable television box and a mailbox before the pickup overturned, the report said.

The driver was unhurt. He was charged with fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer, leaving the scene of an accident and driving without a license, said sheriff's Capt. Steve Morris.

Teen is denied bond in fatal shooting in Grovetown

A Superior Court judge denied bond Tuesday to one of five Augusta teens charged in a fatal September shooting.

Judge J. Carlisle Overstreet denied bond for Willie Bernard Butler, 19, who was arrested along with Martin Holmes, 17, Karnbi Octavious Young, 19, Patrick Booker, 19, and an unidentified 14-year-old after the Sept. 24 shooting death of 33-year-old Ricky Gibson, of Grovetown.

Gibson, his girlfriend and their baby were in his home off Williams Street when a group of men forced their way in, Columbia County Coroner Vernon Collins said.

As Gibson's girlfriend was being held on the front porch, she heard his screams and gunshots from inside. She fled with her baby, and gunshots were fired in her direction, Collins said.

Overstreet denied bond for Butler, saying he might threaten the community or commit more felonies before trial.

Assistant District Attorney Brooks Hudson told the judge that Gibson's girlfriend fears for her life. He said Butler has a criminal past as a juvenile, including charges of entering an auto, theft by shoplifting, theft by taking and criminal trespassing.

The following accounts were taken from reports from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office. Additional reports are available at www.columbiacountyso.org:

Man arrested for disorder near voting precinct

A former Augusta State University public safety officer and Grovetown City Council candidate was released on bond from the Columbia County Detention Center early Wednesday after his arrest on a charge of disorderly conduct in the parking lot of an Evans voting precinct.

James Joseph Stachowiak, 47, of the 300 block of Mears Street in Martinez, was in his vehicle outside the Columbia County Library about 5:30 p.m. when he was approached by an Evans woman.

She told him the American flag sticking out of his vehicle's sunroof was turned upside down. In response, he ranted about his political views, according to witnesses.

The woman told police that she thought she saw a weapon in Stachowiak's vehicle, so she went to find a special duty officer working inside the library

Police said they found an empty holster to a handgun in the passenger seat of the man's vehicle, in addition to a tactical baton and pepper spray that Stachowiak was carrying.

Gun found in car after stop on Interstate 20

An Augusta man driving on Interstate 20 near the Grovetown exit was arrested Wednesday after police stopped him and found a concealed handgun in his vehicle.

Alphonso Bernard Hayes, 23, of the 300 block of Fox Trace, was charged with carrying a concealed weapon and was released from the Columbia County Detention Center late Wednesday on a $1,100 property bond.

He was stopped by police at 12:36 p.m. for having a cracked windshield on his Chevrolet Caprice.

Hayes, a truck driver for Swift Transportation, appeared nervous when talking to police. As the deputy was writing Hayes a warning, he asked him whether there were any illegal items in the vehicle. Hayes said he had nothing illegal.

A sheriff's dog searched the sedan, turning up a handgun wrapped inside a shirt in between the driver's and passenger's seats.

Student is charged with carrying knife at Lakeside

A female student at Lakeside High School was arrested Monday on charges of carrying a kitchen knife in her purse.

At 10:17 a.m., someone saw that the girl had the large knife in her purse. The suspect told the school's public safety officer that several other students had threatened her, so she brought the knife with her for protection

She was taken to the Regional Youth Detention Center.