CLASSIC CITY NEWS

By Joe Johnson Brittani Ann Clark was arrested on the night of March 3rd after she stole food from an apartment on West Hancock Avenue shared by University of Georgia students. The 34-year-old homeless woman told police that she had permission to take the food from what she believed was a kitchen owned by the church across the street. A 21-year-old UGA student had called 911 to report a burglary in progress because noises were coming from the kitchen when her roommates were

By Joe Johnson In the early morning hours of February 18th Athens police responded to a report of someone threatening to commit suicide in the parking lot of Walmart on Lexington Road. Upon arrival officers found a 32-year-old homeless man holding a gas canister who had called a suicide crisis line and said he planned to kill himself by inhaling helium. After police established rapport with the man he willingly surrendered the tank of gas to them and he was transported to an

By Joe Johnson Authorities are asking for the public’s help with identifying a woman whose body was recently found outside of a business along Atlanta Highway. The middle-aged homeless woman is believed to have died from exposure during the recent extreme cold weather. She was found the morning of January 27th by an employee of American Pest Control in the rear parking lot of the business. There were no indications of alcohol or drug abuse, according to County Coroner Michael

By Joe Johnson A 57-year-.old homeless man was arrested Saturday morning at McDonald’s on Prince Avenue where he reportedly exposed himself to others in the dining room. Police said they responded upon receiving a report at 10:49 am about Carr sitting in one of the booths and removing a blanket to expose himself to diners. Management wanted to bar the man from the restaurant, but police took Carr into custody upon learning that the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office had a warrant

By Joe Johnson A homeless woman who was found dead last week outside of an Atlanta Highway business could be the second victim of the recent severe cold weather in Athens. The still-unidentified woman was found the morning of January 27th by an employee of American Pest Control in the rear parking lot of the business. There were no indications of alcohol or drug abuse, according to County Coroner Michael Eberhart, who noted that she died when temperatures were below freezing.

A fundraiser is being held to help pay for the final expenses for 22-year-old Dequavious Ragsdale, who froze to death Tuesday night at a homeless camp in Athens. His GoFundMe reads as follows: Dequavious “Qua” Ragsdale was a brother, a nephew, & grandson. He was loved by many & was the type of person who would check on you before himself. He was very big on family. Anyone who knew him would say he is a good person who has been through a lot but still found a reason to look at

Davenport By Joe Johnson Three squatters were arrested last week when they were found in a vacant eastside apartment with a juvenile. Police officers responded the morning of January 12th to investigate a complaint that people were illegally living in an apartment on Gaines School Road. The officers found and arrested three adults, identified as Jasmine Tykeya Davenport, 33, Gerald Anthony Thomas Jr., 30, and Jasmine Chantell Lumpkin, 34, all of whom were charged with unlawf

By Joe Johnson Authorities are investigating the death of a man whose body was found Tuesday morning on train tracks off of Old Hull Road. A CSX engineer called 911 just before 11 a.m. to report that his train was traveling northbound when he saw a motionless body on the tracks. Police said that upon responding to the scene they observed a dead man whose body had injuries consistent with having been struck by a train. A resident of a nearby homeless camp gave police a possi

By Joe Johnson The glass display window of a downtown Athens clothing store was recently broken by two homeless men who were fighting. Ryan Kee Frank, 32, and Kyle Ian Fraser-Keeto, 37, were arguing about a phone charger on East Clayton Street at about 9 p.m. on December 3rd when things escalated into a physical altercation. During the fight one of the men pushed the other into the display window of Cillies, causing it to shatter. The store owner responded to the scene and

By Joe Johnson Aaron Keith Preston was arrested early in the morning of November 23rd after he pretended a flip-flop was a weapon when attempting to rob someone. The incident happened at about 1:45 a.m. at The Wingate hotel on North Avenue where Preston reportedly approached a guest who was outside smoking while on FaceTime with his girlfriend. The 30-year-old homeless man was wearing a hoodie over his head and holding an object under it that was pointed towards the victim, b

By Joe Johnson Christopher Jerrell McKibben was arrested in downtown Athens on the afternoon of November 19th after he reportedly frightened a couple of teenage girls. The girls, aged 16 and 17, were walking on the sidewalk along North Thomas Street at about 2:25 p.m. when McKibben came at them with his arms outstretched and saying, “I have to do this.” When one of the girls tried running into the street the 33-year-old homeless man allegedly grabbed her by the hip but she sl

By Joe Johnson Whitney Dustin Beck was arrested in the afternoon of October 25th after he chased a University of Georgia student while wielding a knife on the North Oconee River Greenway. The 55-year-old homeless man had a crack pipe and open whiskey bottle when police located him. The incident was at around 3:20 p.m. when the 20-year-old student was walking on the trail between Inglewood and Old Winterville roads when Beck accosted and began chasing him while swinging a knif

By Joe Johnson Whitney Dustin Beck was arrested in the afternoon of October 25th after he chased a University of Georgia student while wielding a knife on the North Oconee River Greenway. The 55-year-old homeless man had a crack pipe and open whiskey bottle when police located him. The incident was at around 3:20 p.m. when the 20-year-old student was walking on the trail between Inglewood and Old Winterville roads when Beck accosted and began chasing him while swinging a knif

By Joe Johnson A 37-year-old woman reported last week that she had been raped in an encampment off Old Hull Road. The assault happened inside a tent, she told police, where she “felt paralyzed and could not say no” to the suspect. The victim said that the suspect was smoking methamphetamine that he blew into her face, but she didn’t do any drugs. The woman’s allegations were referred to Criminal Investigations Division detectives.

By Joe Johnson An Athens-Clarke grand jury has indicted a homeless woman on felony charges in connection with a violent confrontation with police officers last month. Amber Mae Skeens, 37, was charged with felony obstruction of law enforcement officers, criminal damage to property, and criminal trespass, according to the indictment filed Tuesday in Superior Court. According to police and court records, the incident happened on the evening of September 1st at the Murphy Expres

By Joe Johnson A Superior Court judge has refused to grant bail to an Athens man who has been in custody since nearly killing someone with a brick two months ago. Tyderius LaJason Moon was arrested on August 3rd following the assault on 56-year-old James King who he accused of stealing. King was barely breathing when police found him lying on the ground and bleeding from the head outside of a Prince Avenue convenience store. After beating his victim in the face with his fists

By Joe Johnson Danny Gene Evans recently spent over a week in jail after he pleaded guilty to defecating in the entrance of a building on...

By Joe Johnson Kenya Lavine Taylor would not go quietly when police were arresting him at county library on Baxter Street so they had to...

By Joe Johnson Authorities are investigating the death of a 34-year-old man whose body was discovered decomposing in his car this week....

By Joe Johnson A county grand jury has indicted a homeless man and woman who are responsible for causing thousands of dollars in damages...