Madison Police
Department
• On Aug. 24 a simple battery complaint was filed at an Eatonton Road truck stop after a man alleged that after he had backed his truck into another man’s truck, the other driver attempted to attack the complainant. According to reports, the complainant said the other driver exited his truck after the collision and “started to call him names and berate him about his driving skills.” The complainant said the driver then chased him around the parking lot and attempted to assault him. The other driver told police that after the collision, the complainant became irate and began to make fun of the driver’s mother. The man said he told the complainant that he had “better stop making fun of his mother or he was going to get hurt.” The driver also said that if he had intended to assault the complainant he would have done so with a level of intensity and proficiency that the complainant would “have really hurt him.” The driver alleged the complainant struck him in the face. Neither man showed signs of injury and the collision did not damage either truck. Both men were released at the scene.

• On Aug. 23 a larceny complaint was filed at an Eatonton Road department store after a man reported that he had placed his Sony Cybershot camera down while he was attempting to make prints and someone took the camera. The man said the camera was valued at $160. Store officials were able to capture a photo of a man taking the camera. The photo has been released to police for identification.

• On Aug. 22 William Howard Paden Jr., 40, Madison, was arrested and charged with battery and obstruction after he allegedly struck a woman at a Micha Way location and then locked himself inside an apartment. According to reports, officers responded to a fight-in-progress call and observed a woman with a bloody lip. The woman told officers that Paden had struck her during an argument. An officer attempted to locate Paden but he had allegedly locked himself inside an apartment and would not open the door. A spare key was located and the officer entered the apartment and observed Paden on the floor with his arms behind his back. Paden told the officer that he was “not resisting.” He also said the argument stemmed from a discussion regarding family land. He was then transported without incident to the Morgan County Detention Center.

• On  Aug. 25 a larceny from auto complaint was filed at a Monticello Highway location after a man reported that while he was working someone entered his vehicle and removed a Glock .40-caliber handgun. The man said the vehicle was not locked and the windows were down. The weapon was located in a holster in the center console. The holster was left behind and taken as evidence. The weapon is valued at $610.

• On Aug. 22 a simple assault complaint was filed at a Bethany Road location after a man reported that while he had been riding his bike on Bethany Road, a man in a farm tractor pulled out of Plainview Road in front of him. The man said he rode around the tractor and “shot the man on the tractor a bird and continued on.” The man said when he arrived at the parking lot of a business on Bethany Road, the man in the tractor pulled up, exited the tractor and then struck the man with his fist. The man said at one point the tractor driver pushed him to the ground and “dared him to get back up.” The tractor driver confirmed that he did pull out in front of the bike rider but said that he believed he had plenty of distance to pull onto the road. The tractor driver said after the biker passed him, he then pulled in front and slowed his speed to irritate the tractor driver. The tractor driver said he did confront the man in the parking lot and that words were exchanged prior to a physical confrontation. An officer observed that both men had ripped shirts. The tractor driver is 60 years old. The bike rider is 53 years old.

• On Aug. 28 Pam Sabrina Butler, 40, Madison, was arrested and charged with criminal trespass after a South Main Street resident reported that he had observed Butler leaving his garage with a can of soda from the garage. Butler was located in the area by officers and positively identified by the South Main Street resident as the woman who took the soda.

• On Aug. 27 a damage to property complaint was filed at an Oil Mill Road location after a man reported that someone had attempted to break into his shop. Reports state that a gate to the business was destroyed but the lock and chain did not give. An officer also observed two broken windows at the site. The officer was able to obtain surveillance video that showed four people on the property attempting to enter. The officer also retrieved a beer can from the property and lifted fingerprints from the can.

• On Aug. 28 Joshua Dare Stines, 20, Madison, was arrested and charged with aggravated assault after he allegedly threatened several people with a knife during a confrontation on Commerce Street. According to reports, one man alleged Stines had placed a knife against his neck. Another man alleged that Stines had placed a knife against his stomach. Stines, reports state, was forced from the Commerce Street residence and left on a white BMX bike. The bike was located at a Carmichael Street residence. Stines was also located at the residence. He told an officer he had never left the Carmichael Street residence. An officer noted that Stines was “in a highly intoxicated state.” The officer also located Stines’ wallet in the middle of the road in front of the Commerce Street residence where the altercation took place.

Morgan County Sheriff’s Office
• On Aug. 20 a theft by taking complaint was filed at a Seven Islands Road, Buckhead, location after a man reported that someone had used a truck to smash open the gates of a rock quarry operation. According to reports, a Ford F-350 dually pickup truck was located less than a mile from the quarry site by a property owner. The truck was missing several tool boxes with various tools. The quarry was also missing 350 to 400 pounds of copper welding lead valued at $1,000. When the deputy examined the truck he noticed that the front of the vehicle was damaged. Reports indicate that the front gates of the quarry sustained “extensive” damage.

• On Aug. 25 a theft by taking complaint was filed at a Heidi Trail, Buckhead, location after a man reported that someone had removed a marine boat battery valued at $100 from his 2004 pontoon boat.

• On Aug. 26 Robert Nicholas Hilsman, 21, Athens, was arrested and charged with furnishing alcohol to minors after he allegedly supplied beer for two 16-year-old females and one 20-year-old male. According to reports, deputies noticed an abandoned vehicle off U.S. 441 near the Morgan/Oconee County line. While investigating the vehicle two 16-year-old females drove near the deputies from a trail leading to a river. The vehicle was stopped and both girls tested positive for alcohol. While speaking with the girls, a 20-year-old male walked to the scene from the river. He also stated to officers that he had consumed beer. According to reports, all three indicated Hilsman had supplied the beverages. Hilsman was arrested while walking north on U.S. 441. The two 16-year-old girls were cited for possession of alcohol by a minor and released to their parents.

• On Aug. 28 a theft by taking complaint was filed at a Sandy Creek Road location after a woman reported that someone had taken a Sanyo digital camera from her vehicle. The woman said a wallet next to the camera was not disturbed.

• On Aug. 27 a verbal dispute complaint was filed at a Wagnon Mill Road location after a woman reported that a man had taken her car keys and thrown them into the woods. Reports state that the man had been with friends at a hunting club working on food plots and drinking beer when an argument ensued at the club. After the argument, which was briefly physical, friends decided to drive the man’s truck home to insure that he did not drink and drive. After driving the truck home the man returned two hours later for his friend, but could not find him. The woman found the man walking on Wagnon Mill Road and stopped to pick him up. After picking the man up, the man became agitated and pulled the vehicles’ parking brake before throwing the keys  in the woods. The man then left the scene on foot. He was later picked up by an uncle. The woman retrieved a spare set of keys after searching the woods for her keys and then left the area.

• On Aug. 25 a financial transaction card fraud complaint was filed at a West Main Street, Rutledge, location after a woman reported that while on vacation she realized she was missing her bank debit card. The woman said when she returned she noticed that the card had been used to make two unapproved transactions.

• On Aug. 24 a harassing phone call complaint was filed at a Prospect Road location after a woman reported that her ex-boyfriend continued to call her even though the relationship had ended. The woman said the man was calling from New York and after she had changed her personal numbers the man started calling her at work.

• On Aug. 24 a theft by taking complaint was filed at Morgan County Fire Station #8, Seven Islands Road, after a man reported that two of three air conditioning units at the station had been damaged.

• On Aug. 23 a battery complaint was filed at a Aqua Road location after a man alleged that his son had beat him on the face. The son was located in the woods behind the house and he alleged that the father had attempted to choke him. The altercation started, reports state, after the father attempted to wake the son at 6:30 p.m. and berate him regarding his life choices.

• On Aug. 22 a criminal trespass complaint was filed at a Parks Mill Road, Buckhead, location after a man reported that following his mother’s death, someone had attempted to enter her residence. The complainant said that his brother had observed that someone had heated a latch on a gate in an attempt to enter the property.

• On Aug. 22 a harassing phone call complaint was filed at a Davis Academy Road location after a woman reported that a young man called her and told her that his friend’s mother was getting married and that he had received an airline ticket and that he had been involved in an auto accident and his nose was broken.

• On Aug. 18 a cruelty to animals complaint was filed at a Prospect Road, Rutledge, location after a woman reported that a man had brought four emaciated horses to her barn for boarding and training. The man told the woman that the horse’s owners had not paid him in nine months and that he had not fed the animals lately. The woman was advised to hold the animals until the Georgia Department of Agriculture could investigate. The woman, reports state, has provided food and medical attention for the horses.

Printed in the September 1, 2011 edition.