Breyonna Watts, 25, of Douglas, is in jail on a number of charges after she allegedly hit a family member with her car, crashed into another car in the process and fled, leading Nicholls police and Coffee County deputies on a chase before eventually coming to a stop at a house in Nicholls.
And then things really got crazy.
In the early morning hours of Friday, April 21, 2023, a Nicholls police officer responded to a call referencing a possible vehicle v. pedestrian accident. The vehicle in question, a silver Kia Soul, then allegedly struck another vehicle and fled the scene.
An incident report from the sheriff’s office describes what happened. According to the report, Watts was driving the Soul. After she fled the alleged accident scene, she headed towards Douglas. A deputy saw the vehicle and attempted a traffic stop. The report states that Watts ignored the deputy. A chase ensued and a second deputy put out spike strips on Highway 32 to stop the Kia. The spike strips hit the tires but the Kia didn’t stop.
According to the report, the Kia turned down Danny Kirkland Road, ran through the yard of a home, then returned to Highway 32 by way of Danny Kirkland Road again and headed back toward Nicholls. The report says the Kia weaved in and out of lanes and approached speeds of 80 mph — even after the spike strips had done their work.
The Kia went through Nicholls and eventually stopped at a home on Van Streat Highway. One of the deputes pinned the Kia with his patrol vehicle so it couldn’t move. Deputies removed Watts from the vehicle and placed her in handcuffs. While they were arresting Watts, a male approached saying he was Watts’s father. According to the report, he was uncooperative and was also taken into custody.
EMS also responded to the scene. EMTs were examining Watts in the back of a patrol car when Jarquavius Jefferson, 23, of Nicholls, walked up to the patrol car and started hitting Watts, who was handcuffed at the time. Two deputies attempted to restrain Jarquavius; as they were doing so, his twin brother, Marquavius, came up and tried to pull the deputies off of Jarquavius. One of deputies ended up tasering Marquavius then they took him into custody. EMTs checked out Watts and the Jefferson twins and cleared them all to be taken to jail.
One deputy took the twins to jail while other officers waited with Watts for a trooper from the Georgia State Patrol to arrive. While they waited, the report states that Watts attempted to get out of the patrol car. They removed her from one vehicle and placed her in another then took her to jail. At the law enforcement center, the report says that Watts refused to get out of the patrol car. As such, deputies and jail staff had to remove her. She continued being combative, the report says, to the point that jail staff placed her in a restraint chair.
Watts was charged with numerous alleged violations, including aggravated assault (family violence), DUI-alcohol, fleeing or attempting to elude police, theft by taking, and hit and run. She remains in the Coffee County Jail.
Jarquavius Jefferson was charged with battery and obstruction while Marquavius Jefferson was charged with obstruction. They have been released.
Castavia Antron Gibson was also charged with traffic violations in relation to the incident. He has also been released from jail.