The Blotter April 30 2003

At Hartsfield Airport, a 23-year-old Marietta woman walked through the security checkpoint and set off the alarm. She was pulled aside and searched. The female security official felt a lump in the center of the 23-year-old’s chest. “What’s that,” she asked. “It’s a mole,” said the 23-year-old.

But when the 23-year-old raised her shirt, there was an item wrapped in tissue and taped to her chest. It wasn’t a mole, but marijuana. The 23-year-old said she knew she was wrong. She went to jail.

A 33-year-old man was parking his car on Simpson Street, when he noticed a man in a blue coat, ransacking the car in front of him. “Get out of the car and get on the ground,” yelled the 33-year-old. Instead, the man in the blue coat took off running. The 33-year-old chased the man and caught him near a federal building on West Peachtree Street. The man was taken back to Simpson Street until police arrived. “I was caught red-handed this time,” said the man in the blue coat. “I have to go to court tomorrow and I was just looking for some nice clothes to wear.”

At the Auburn Avenue precinct, a 50-year-old man reported that “Big Bird” broke out the rear window on his ‘95 Mazda, which was parked on Fitzgerald Street. (Note: The 50-year-old didn’t actually see “Big Bird” break into his car, a witness told him about it). Nothing was taken from the Mazda. “Big Bird” was described as a heavyset, 30-year-old woman who hangs out on Boulevard. Also, “Big Bird” has short red hair.

Around 12:40 a.m., an officer saw an 18-year-old man in a known drug area on Campbellton Road. The officer got out of his patrol car, and the 18-year-old started to run. During the chase, the officer saw the 18-year-old swallow four bags of suspected cocaine. When the officer got close, the 18-year-old punched him, so the officer tackled him and handcuffed him.

While in the patrol car, the 18-year-old said he was just small time, and he does sell drugs but not a lot, and the officer should let him go. The 18-year-old admitted swallowing a bag of marijuana, then denied swallowing anything. Finally, he said he couldn’t go to jail because his father was in jail for beating up his mother, and he didn’t want to see his father. The officer noted that the 18-year-old “gave me all this information without me even asking him a question.”

Atlanta police responded to a call from a nightclub on Peachtree Street. A security guard said a Fulton County sheriff’s deputy was intoxicated and causing a disturbance at the club. The security guard said the club’s policy did not allow armed persons into the club, except for law-enforcement officers on official business. He said the Fulton County sheriff’s deputy wanted to enter the club with his gun, even though he wasn’t on official business.

Because the sheriff’s deputy appeared intoxicated, the security guard offered to check his gun in the back. According to the security guard, the sheriff’s deputy said, “I own this county,” and he could enter the club with a gun if he wanted. The security guard said he asked him to leave. The sheriff’s deputy refused and threatened to have the security guard arrested.

The sheriff’s deputy told the Atlanta police officer that he was willing to check his gun at the club, but not with the security guard. He also said after the security guard asked him to leave, the security guard threatened him by saying, “I’m gonna fuck you up.” He had no witness to that threat. The Fulton County Sheriff’s Department was notified, along with Internal Affairs. At the request of a Fulton County sergeant, the sheriff’s deputy left the club.

A 32-year-old man was caught vandalizing a billboard on Ponce de Leon Avenue at Freedom Parkway. He used black spray paint to scrawl “I am good” on the billboard. The man said he painted the message because he was tired of looking at the advertisement.

A teller at a bank on Peachtree Street said a middle-aged man approached her window. “I lost my job,” said the man, handing her a robbery note. “Give me all your 50s and 100s from the top drawer.” This isn’t a joke, he added. The teller gave him the money. He told her to act natural, serve the next customer, and wait until he left.

After he left, she called the police. The teller said the man used to come into the bank and cash his paycheck, and she believes he worked at a local hotel. Another teller also recognized the man as a past customer.

A 21-year-old woman got into a fight with her live-in boyfriend at their apartment on Alison Court. She said she was fed up with it, so she put his clothes in the hallway so she could pack them up. The boyfriend got upset and said he was going to kill everyone in the apartment. Then, he poured lighter fluid on his clothes and threw hot coals on them. But somehow, instead of catching on fire, the coals were smeared into the carpet and onto the hallway doors. The girlfriend called police, and her boyfriend took off. No one was hurt, but the carpet sustained $500 worth of damage from hot coals.

A 32-year-old man on Tazor Street saw a friend dump a refrigerator on the street, so he called 911 and reported his friend’s car description and tag number. Police found the friend, a 55-year-old man, and arrested him for littering.??