Staff reports
A Brown County man faces a Level 6 felony for auto theft following a crash on Sweetwater Trail on Jan. 10.
Brown County Sheriff’s deputies William Pool and Josh Stargell responded to the crash in the 8700 block of Sweetwater Trail.
The deputies determined the driver, later identified as 24-year-old Anthony Denson, never had a driver’s license, according to the probable cause affidavit.
Denson told police he had been driving the vehicle at the time of the crash.
Police were able to confirm that Denson had stolen the vehicle from a relative. That relative wanted to report the vehicle as stolen.
Denson told Pool he had taken the keys from the relative’s coat around 1 or 2 a.m. and that he did take the car without the relative’s permission.
He said he ate half a suboxone strip before deputies arrived on scene because he did not want to get caught. The other half he threw out of the window into a driveway. It was not located by police, according to the affidavit.
Denson said he was coming back from Edinburgh when he lit a cigarette and that a part of it fell into his lap. When he looked to see where it went, he ran off the road, becoming stuck, the affidavit states.
There was no visible damage to the vehicle and it was driven home from the scene.
The relative did not know the vehicle was gone until she was notified that Denson had crashed while driving it without her permission. She told police he did not have permission to drive it since he did not have a driver’s license. She told deputies she wished to file charges against Denson for taking it without her permission.
Denson was arrested.
On Jan. 11, Denson was formally charged with the Level 6 felony and with a Class C misdemeanor for operating a vehicle without ever receiving a license.
Driver avoids object in roadway, hits tree
JACKSON TWP. — A 22-year-old Martinsville man was injured last week when he crashed his vehicle into a ditch and struck a tree while avoiding an object on Lick Creek Road.
Brown County Sheriff’s Deputy Kyle Minor responded to the scene of the crash around 11 p.m. on Jan. 10 near the intersection of Hassetown Road, according to the accident report.
The driver, Brendan Grubbs, told police he was driving on Lick Creek Road when he observed something in the roadway and tried to avoid it.
His vehicle then went off into a ditch and struck a tree on the passenger side. It returned to the road before coming to a complete stop.
He was checked at the scene by EMS. Grubbs said he would have someone take him to the hospital for further treatment of injuries to his face.
His vehicle was towed.
Vehicle ran off road after driver fell asleep
A 75-year-old Brown County woman crashed her vehicle on Greasy Creek Road on Jan. 11 after she reportedly fell asleep while driving.
Brown County Sheriff’s Deputy Chad Williams responded to the Greasy Creek Road and Weddle Lane intersection for a report of a vehicle that had struck a guide wire for a utility pole.
The driver, Margaret Callon, told officers she was traveling south on Greasy Creek Road when she fell asleep.
She complained of chest pain and was checked by EMS. The vehicle was towed from the scene.
Local man facing felony for failure to return
A Morgantown man has been charged with a Level 6 felony for failing to report to serve time in the Brown County jail.
Last October, Capt. Michael Moore with the Brown County Sheriff’s Department was advised by Jail Commander Kenneth Moore that Sean Harris-Rudd, 24, of Morgantown, had failed to turn himself into the jail on Oct. 15. Rudd was ordered to serve jail time in a child support case, according to a probable cause affidavit.
A court order stated the incarceration could be vacated if Rudd paid $2,000. As of Oct. 19, the amount had not been paid.
A warrant was issued for his arrest in December.
On Dec. 29, Rudd was formally charged with the felony for failing to report to jail.
