Two people, including a Cleveland woman, were arrested Tuesday after fleeing from Gainesville Police.
According to a post on the Gainesville Police Department’s Facebook page, a Gainesville officer responded to the area of 800 Timber Valley Way around 1 p.m. Tuesday after a 911 call about two individuals passed out behind the wheel of a black Ford Mustang. Upon contact, the officer noticed both occupants were behaving abnormally. He also reported seeing drugs in the car.
The driver, identified as Ronald Sammy Loggins, 23, from Forsyth, started the vehicle and drove in reverse, knocking the officer off his feet but clear of the moving vehicle.
“Our officer attempted to stop Loggins, but Loggins continued to flee and allegedly attempted to run over our officer again,” the post states. “Immediately after, a short pursuit took place between our officer and the black Mustang in the area of Mundy Mill Road and I-985.”
According to officials, Loggins was driving erratically and caused four crashes while fleeing. The Gainesville police officer ended his pursuit when two flat tires disabled his patrol vehicle. He requested backup from Oakwood Police, Hall County deputies, and the Georgia State Patrol.
Deputies later located the Mustang in a business parking lot in the area of McEver and Stephens Road. They took Loggins and his passenger, Amber Lynn Shaft, 26, of Cleveland, into custody.
Police charged Loggins with multiple offenses, including aggravated assault on a peace officer, fleeing with intent to elude, obstruction, possession of heroin, DUI, and kidnapping. They also charged him with numerous traffic violations.
Police charged Shaft with possession of heroin.
Gainesville Police Chief Jay Parrish says he’s thankful his department’s patrol officer came out of the situation with only minor injuries and is now recovering. He also commended the assisting agencies for ensuring “we had the best outcome.”
“This is a horrible example of how drugs poison more than just those under the influence,” Parrish adds. “This could have potentially had tragic results, but fortunately, it did not, and no injuries were reported from the crashes Loggins caused.”
WRWH’s Jaymi Crawford contributed to this report
