Georgia Man Allegedly Hits Two Police Officers with his Car in Two Separate Arrests

Shannon Carter was finally arrested in Tennessee on Monday almost a month after his alleged chase with Georgia authorities in Jackson County. 

In July, Carter led authorities on a chase through Buford and allegedly attempted to run over a deputy trying to get away. Carter rammed his car into one of the deputies' vehicles and ran from the scene. 

Fast forward to the situation in Tennessee on Monday, where Carter was found driving a vehicle that was reported as stolen. When Tennessee police caught up to him, Carter allegedly reversed the vehicle and hit another officer and pinned him against his patrol car. 

Carter is in the process of being extradited to Georgia. He is facing a slew of traffic violations as well as aggravated assault charges in Georgia. It has not been reported what the charges are that he is facing in Tennessee. As a Georgia DUI Lawyer, I will focus on the offense of fleeing or attempting to elude an officer in Georgia in today's post. 

Fleeing an Officer in Georgia

The Georgia Code defines the offense of fleeing or attempting to elude as:

It shall be unlawful for any driver of a vehicle willfully to fail or refuse to bring his or her vehicle to a stop or otherwise to flee or attempt to elude a pursuing police vehicle or police officer when given a visual or an audible signal to bring the vehicle to a stop. The signal given by the police officer may be by hand, voice, emergency light, or siren. The officer giving such signal shall be in uniform prominently displaying his or her badge of office, and his or her vehicle shall be appropriately marked showing it to be an official police vehicle. O.C.G.A. §40-6-395(a).

Usually, if convicted of fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer in Georgia, the offense is considered a high and aggravated misdemeanor. If this is the case, then the penalty can include a fine between $500 and $5,000, and a jail term between 10 days and twelve months. 

However, much like the situation that Carter has found himself in, the law states that there are specific situations that cause the offense to be classified as a felony offense. These situations include:

• Operating a vehicle 20 MPH over the posted speed limit, 
• Striking or colliding with another vehicle or pedestrian,
• Fleeing in traffic conditions that place the general public at risk of receiving serious injuries, 
• Or leaving the state of Georgia.

Shannon is most likely facing a few different counts of felony fleeing or attempting to elude. A conviction for felony fleeing or attempting to elude can include fines up to $5,000 and a prison term from one year to up to five years.

Practice Note

As a Georgia DUI Attorney, I am well-experienced in successfully defending serious traffic violations such as the one listed above. Many times, our offices have gotten these cases reduced to a lessor offense. The majority of the time, people who are charged with fleeing or attempting to elude have done nothing like the facts listed out in the reports above. 

People tend to be wrongfully accused of this offense usually because they did not see or hear the police officer in his or her attempt to pull their vehicle over. If you or a loved one has been arrested for a serious traffic offense like fleeing or eluding or DUI in Georgia, contact our offices today.