A man was arrested last week on drug and weapons charges after an East Ridge police officer stopped to question him after watching the man jaywalking in the 6500 block of Ringgold Road.
According to a police report, the officer saw a man and woman cross Ringgold Road from the Super 8 Motel to the Mapco. The pair stopped in the road and seemed to be in some sort of disorder, the report states. The officer met with the couple in the parking lot of the Mapco where they explained they were looking for a place to spend the night. When the officer asked for identification, the report states, he detected a strong odor of marijuana coming from their persons.
The report states that the woman told the officer that she had smoked pot about 40 minutes prior. The woman gave police consent to search her purse, the report states. When the officer asked the couple to go and stand in front of the patrol car, the woman complied but the man ran. The report states that the officer ordered the woman to stay put and gave chase to the man. The report states that the officer told the man to stop or that the officer would use his taser. The man continued to run, the report states, and the officer shot him with a taser.
The man was ordered to lie on his stomach and police saw a sheath containing three throwing knives on his back. The report states officers secured the knives and then placed the man in custody. Officers searched the bags and boxes the man was carrying and found .22 cal. ammunition, plastic baggies, a glass pipe, rolling papers, an electronic scale. Officers found more than $500 in the man’s pockets along with a half Xanax pill and a bag containing more than seven grams of suspected marijuana.
Police charged Brandon Joel Atcheson, a 24-year-old homeless man, with Possession of Schedule IV Drugs, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Possession of a Prohibited Weapon. He is scheduled to appear in East Ridge Municipal Court on March 29. The woman was given a citation for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.
_ 1312 West End Ave.: Police were dispatched to the address on March 1 in regard to a disorder with a weapon. According to a police report, an officer spoke with a woman who said she had been assaulted by her boyfriend, who was still inside the house. The victim told officers that her boyfriend, Dustin Draughon, might have a BB gun or pellet gun. The report states that as officers attempted to enter the house, Draughon appeared on the front porch. The report states that Draughon was intoxicated and started yelling and cursing while officers were trying to speak with him. The man was detained while officers investigated, the report states. At this time Draughon became “combative” and he was taken to the ground. When the man was placed into a patrol car he started kicking the window causing damage to the frame, the report states. Draughon’s girlfriend told police that the couple had gotten into a verbal argument that escalated into a physical altercation. She said that Draughon pushed her to the ground in the bedroom, at which point she went into the laundry room and called police. Draughon is to appear in East Ridge Municipal Court on March 8, where he is charged with Domestic Assault, Vandalism and Public Intoxication.
_ 3241 Castle Ave.: Police were called to the address on Feb. 28 after a person called to report a suspicious vehicle. According to a police report, the caller told police that a red Kia with a couple inside were parked outside a residence. When police arrived and asked the occupants of the vehicle what was going on, one officer spotted a firearm in the pocket of the male in the car. The report states that police quickly detained the man and secured the fully-loaded 9 mm pistol. The report states that officers found a small plastic bag containing about 17.5 dosages of Xanax in the passenger seat of the car in which he was riding. Police also found $437 in U.S. currency on the man. Ladarius Trey Davis, 22, of Castle Avenue, was charged with Possession of a Firearm During a Dangerous Felony and Possession of Schedule IV Drugs for resale. He is scheduled to appear in Municipal Court on March 8.
