Drunk-driving suspect tried to switch places with his dog after being pulled over for speeding, police say
Joshua Zitser
2 min read
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- A man tried to avoid arrest by switching places with his dog after being pulled over for speeding.
- The driver exited the vehicle from the passenger side and insisted he had not been at the wheel.
- The man was charged with a DUI, while the dog was let go “with just a warning,” police said.
A driver who was stopped by police in Colorado for speeding on Saturday night attempted to shift the blame by switching seats with his dog, putting his pet in the driver seat, police said.
A police officer watched the entirety of the bizarre attempt unfold, witnessing the driver trying to put his pet behind the wheel as he maneuvered to the other side of the car, according to a Facebook post by Springfield Police in southeastern Colorado.
The driver was then seen exiting the vehicle from the passenger side, before insisting that he had not been the one driving, police said.
According to the police department, the driver showed clear signs of intoxication, and ran away when asked how much he had had to drink.
The driver was apprehended within 20 yards of the vehicle, the police department added.
Police found that the driver had two active warrants for his arrest, and he was booked into the Baca County Jail.
He was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, driving while ability impaired, driving under suspension, speeding, and resisting arrest.
The dog was given to an acquaintance of the driver to be looked after while the suspect was in jail, Springfield Police Department said.
It added: “The dog does not face any charges and was let go with just a warning. “
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Springfield Police Department did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment, but the social media post indicates that the investigation into the incident was ongoing as of Sunday.
Man tased at Charlotte High graduation after causing disturbance
A man was stunned with a Taser and arrested after allegedly disrupting a graduation for Charlotte High School.
The graduation ceremony was held at the Charlotte County Sports Park in Port Charlotte.
According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, at around 7:30 p.m. Thursday, officers heard a loud disturbance in the upper seats of the stadium.
Officers said two men were screaming in one another’s faces, the primary aggressor allegedly being 36-year-old Ha’akim Amir Johnson.
They escorted Johnson to the main gate because he told officers a family member was bringing his teenage daughter out to him.
Johnson then agreed to walk to his car and wait for his daughter.
After a short time, another man exited the main gate, and he and Johnson began to yell at each other and threaten to fight.
Johnson ran toward the man while taking off his shirt and took a fighting stance with closed fists. Officers used a Taser to subdue him before arresting after he refused to listen to officers’ verbal commands.
Johnson is being charged with conspiring to interfere with an educational process and resisting an officer without violence.
Fight breaks out after Rantoul High School’s graduation
Gabriella Morando
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RANTOUL, Ill. (WCIA) — Students across Central Illinois are turning tassels and crossing stages, but graduation turned physical at one Champaign County high school.
Rantoul Township High School celebrated its commencement last Friday, but police said a fight broke out and left one officer hurt.
“What’s really upsetting is we’ve worked the Rantoul High School graduation for many, many years and we have not had anything like this before,” said Deputy Chief Christina Reifsteck.
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Reifsteck said one group of kids approached another and started fighting after the ceremony. She said she’s unsure how many people were involved but she does not believe any parents or staff got involved.
“The school is aware of it,” Reifsteck said. “We’re all working collaboratively to try to figure out who the instigator was.”
There were two officers already at the school, but two or three others soon arrived to help break things up. One officer was hit in the mouth, but did not need to go to the hospital.
“There were minor injuries and he was right back to work the following day,” Reifsteck said.
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Reifsteck said the fight was resolved pretty quickly and that some parents and students didn’t even see it. She hopes students don’t let a few minutes define all the hard work they’ve put into getting ready for the next chapter of their lives.
“It just overshadows a really momentous occasion, but I think it’s important for us to not let something that lasted a very short amount of time ruin a whole evening,” Reifsteck said.
The high school did not respond to an interview request.
Reifsteck said some interviews have been conducted, but the investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information about the incident is encouraged to contact Rantoul detectives at 217-893-5601.
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3 high school graduations across the U.S. end with gunfire in less than 24 hours
At least one person was killed and seven others injured in three separate shootings after high school graduation ceremonies in Louisiana, Michigan and Tennessee.
Three high school graduation ceremonies ended with shots fired in separate incidents in Louisiana, Michigan and Tennessee within the span of 24 hours, another sobering example of gun violence impacting everyday lives, including that of teenage students.
After students crossed stages to receive their diplomas, chaos ensued with gunfire.
At least one person was killed and seven others injured in collective shootings that resulted in the arrest of a 17-year-old gunman in Tennessee.
Louisiana
Shots were fired Thursday night around 8:15 p.m as graduates of Hammond High School were leaving their ceremony held on the campus of Southeastern Louisiana University to meet with their families, police said.
Four people were injured in the gunfire, all with non-life-threatening injuries, Hammond PD Chief Edwin Bergeron Jr said in a Thursday night news conference. Three were transported to an area hospital.
A suspect was located after a short foot pursuit and taken into custody, Southeastern Louisiana University Police Chief Michael Beckner told NBC News Friday morning.
Charges are pending as the probe continues and all parties involved were adults, Beckner said.
Police said Thursday no Hammond High School students are believed to be involved in the shooting.
“At this time we do not believe that there were any students involved, we do not believe any juveniles were struck in this incident,” Bergeron said.
Police are asking for witnesses, or people with video footage of shooting to come forward.
There were Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies on site working security for the graduation who responded to the shooting and the “situation was taken under control very quickly,” officials said.
Tangipahoa Parish Superintendent of Schools, Melissa Martin Stilley, said Thursday, “We apologize to our families and to our students that this night, which should have been a very happy occasion for our graduates and their families, ended on such a sad note.”
Hammond High School students will have a virtual school day Friday, though faculty will go into to school, she said.
Michigan
A shooting erupted at the East Kentwood High School campus outside the football stadium in Michigan on Thursday during a graduation ceremony for Crossroads Alternative High School at around 7:20 p.m., injuring two, the Kent County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
Two deputies were on site working security for the ceremony, but by the time deputies got to the parking lot on foot, “the suspect vehicles had fled.”
Kent County Sheriff Michelle LaJoye-Young said in a Thursday evening news conference that people in two cars were exchanging gunshots.
She said “a large number of shots” were fired at the scene.
The sheriff’s office said two victims in the shooting were later located at area hospitals: a 16-year-old from Texas who was shot in the wrist and is in stable condition and a 40-year-old woman from Grand Rapids who was shot in the wrist and abdomen in critical but stable condition.
It’s not clear if the victims were connected to the graduation.
The sheriff’s office believes there were more than two individuals opened fire. Initial reports indicate two white sedans with multiple people inside fled the scene at a high rate of speed, officials said.
Authorities are also asking for witnesses or people with video or photo footage of the incident to submit tips.
Tennessee
A 17-year-old was arrested in a deadly shooting after a graduation ceremony for Riverdale High School held at the Middle Tennessee State University campus shortly before 9 p.m. Wednesday as the crowd was leaving.
Hasani Brewer, 18, was killed and a 17-year-old high school student wounded, police said. Brewer and the teenager who was shot had gotten into a fight when a third person opened fire, police spokesperson Larry Flowers said at a news conference.
The suspect, who is also 17, was not identified because of his age. He will be arraigned in juvenile court on a first-degree murder charge, Flowers said.
Brewer was a past graduate of the high school, and the wounded teenager is a junior, he said.
“The graduation was just ending, people were leaving, this fight began — so just imagine the chaos when shots rang out,” Flowers said.
