Georgia deputy charged with improperly shooting at vehicle

MACON — A middle Georgia sheriff’s deputy has been criminally charged after investigators concluded he improperly fired at a fleeing vehicle and then lied about it.

Bibb County Sheriff David Davis said Bernard Joseph Calloway, 54, was arrested Thursday and charged with aggravated assault, making false statements and violating his oath. The sheriff’s office also fired Calloway.

Davis said in a news release that deputies including Calloway responded to an April 9 call of shots fired and another deputy tried to stop a departing vehicle. Calloway pulled up behind the vehicle, but the driver fled. Calloway then began shooting at the car. Davis said that violated department policy because deputies are only allowed to shoot at a moving vehicle if they’re being fired upon or there is otherwise danger of death or serious injury.

“Calloway’s incident report and description of the events that occurred during the incident did not reflect what was witnessed during the review of the patrol vehicle’s dash camera,” Davis said in the release.

Calloway remained jailed without bail on Friday. It’s unclear if he has a lawyer.

The driver was later arrested and charged with aggravated assault on a police officer. Davis said it hasn’t been decided yet if the driver will be prosecuted.

Calloway had worked as a deputy for one year and was earlier a park ranger at Lake Tobosofkee.

2 seek recounts of losses in Georgia legislative runoffs

ATLANTA — Candidates in two Georgia legislative runoffs say they want recounts of their apparent narrow defeats.

Anne Allen Westbrook said Thursday that she will seek a recount of her 20-vote loss to Derek Mallow in the Aug. 11 race for the Democratic nomination in House District 163 in Savannah.

Stacy Hall said earlier this week that he would seek a recount of his 37-vote loss to Bo Hatchett in the contest for the Republican nomination in Senate District 50, which covers all or part of Banks, Franklin, Habersham, Hall, Jackson, Rabun, Stephens and Towns counties in northeast Georgia.

Under Georgia law, a candidate has the right to request a recount when the difference between the two is less than a half percent of all votes cast. Walter Jones, a spokesman for Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, said candidates can’t make recount requests until the state certifies the Aug. 11 results, which will be sometime next week.

Westbrook tells the Savannah Morning News she has questions about why vote totals changed before Chatham County officials certified the final results. The Democratic nominee faces no declared opposition in the House 163 race, making it likely that the winner of the runoff will win the seat.

Current results show Hatchett with 12,492 votes and Hall with 12,455. In the House race, Mallow has 2,679 votes to Westbrook’s 2,659.

Homeowner accused in killing of code enforcement officer

AUGUSTA — A Georgia man is accused of shooting and killing a city code enforcement officer.

Augusta code enforcement officer Charles Case was found shot multiple times in the middle of a residential street Thursday morning. He died before he could be taken to a hospital.

Richmond County sheriff’s deputies say Smitty O.

Melton, 65, was arrested late Thursday in nearby Aiken County, South Carolina. He was jailed there awaiting extradition to Georgia to face murder and firearm charges. It’s unclear if Melton has a lawyer to speak for him.

Court records show tax officials sued Melton in December for not paying property taxes. Sergeant William McCarty of the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office said Case believed he was performing a routine call.

“It’s a dangerous position and the only thing they have is a badge, and that maybe be good enough to get the job done,” said Augusta Commissioner Bill Fennoy.

Tamekila Walton, a neighbor, told The Augusta Chronicle she heard four gunshots and she and several others ran to find Case lying in the road.

Four large red shell casings on the ground looked like shotgun shells, Walton said. She also saw bullet holes in the door of Case’s city vehicle, she said.

Melton’s half-brother, Rufus Roberts, said Melton has a short temper.

“He’s just a snapper, everybody around here just knows how he is,” Roberts told WJBF-TV. “He gets hyped up and he does crazy stuff, man.”

Case previously investigated animal abuse for the city.

“We are incredibly shocked and saddened by this terrible crime,” City Administrator Jarvis Sims said. “Chip was a kind, dedicated team member and colleague. Our hearts are breaking and our prayers are with his family, department and friends.”

Woman found dead in SUV in Georgia weeks after going missing

AMERICUS — Officials in southwest Georgia say a woman’s body was found in her wrecked car more than a month after she went missing.

A passerby glimpsed a reflection from Rosa Welch’s Jeep Cherokee on Monday east of Americus and called sheriff’s deputies, WALB-TV reports. Deputies believe the 30-year-old Welch ran off the road and hit a tree on July 6, the day she was reported missing.

Sumter County Chief Deputy Eric Bryant said the vehicle was found 100 yards or more off the roadway. The SUV was not visible from the road, and searchers on the ground and in a plane didn’t find it.

“I was still trying to have faith that she was alive,” said Tiffany Hogg, Rosa Welch’s sister.

It’s unclear what caused Welch to run off the road, but foul play is not suspected. An autopsy has been completed on Welch’s body, said Sumter County Coroner Greg Hancock, but toxicology results have not come back.

Bryant said he has no reason to believe Welch was impaired.

8 indicted in choking death of man at Georgia wedding party

DOUGLAS — Eight men have been indicted for involvement in the choking and beating death of a man at a south Georgia wedding reception on New Year’s Day.

WALB-TV reports the men were indicted Wednesday in Coffee County in the death of 39-year-old Warren Van Brown during a fight.

Justin Joe Anderson and Jeffery Harper are both charged with malice murder and felony murder. Anderson is also charged with aggravated assault and evidence tampering, with police saying he tried to hide a baton that was used to beat Brown at the reception in Ambrose.

Matthew Lewis is also indicted for evidence tampering for allegedly hiding the baton.

Five other men are indicted for reckless conduct, with officials saying they restrained Brown, preventing him from defending himself.