Two individuals were recently arrested on felony charges after leading deputies on a chase, with one fleeing on foot after running the vehicle into a ditch. A female was booked on drug charges, while the driver, who fled from law enforcement, was found to be allegedly intoxicated at the time.
According to a Coffee County Sheriff’s Office incident report, on February 3, a deputy was dispatched to Ivy Road in reference to a white Dodge Charger that “kept driving by a residence and stopping in the roadway.” The report states that while the officer was responding to the complaint, he observed the vehicle stop approximately 20–30 feet behind the stop line on Pine Thicket Road before rolling through the stop sign. The deputy then pulled over to the side of the road.
The deputy attempted to stop the Charger but the driver, later identified as 29-year-old William Green of Waycross, didn’t stop. He led the deputy on a chase until reaching Hillcrest Road, when he pulled to the side of the road. However, Green took off again, running through multiple stop signs and reaching speeds of up to 120 mph on Highway 32 West. A Georgia State Patrol trooper then took primary pursuit of the vehicle on the overhead bridge on Highway 32, with Green driving onto the shoulder of the bridge. The trooper then conducted a PIT maneuver with Green dodging it before driving into a ditch and attempting to flee on foot.
The deputy then chased Green on foot and after a short pursuit, caught Green. The report notes that as the deputy was escorting Green to the patrol vehicle, he smelled a strong odor of alcohol coming from his breath. The two passengers, 26-year-old Benjetta Swinson of Douglas and a 30-year-old female of Mississippi, were also placed in handcuffs.
During a search, Swinson was found to be in possession of a “green, leafy substance,” suspected cocaine, and a quantity of pills. Officers also found a firearm was under the passenger seat of the vehicle. After further investigation, all three individuals were booked into the Coffee County Jail.
Green was charged with fleeing or attempting to elude police officers, willful obstruction of law enforcement officers (a misdemeanor), DUI, and eleven traffic citations, and Swinson received counts of possession of a Schedule IV controlled substance: alprazolam, possession of cocaine, crossing guard lines with weapons, drugs, or intoxicants: cocaine, and marijuana less than an ounce. The other female was released without charges.
As of Wednesday morning, Green and Swinson were still being held in the Coffee County Jail.