LPD Reports: Road rage incidents in Loganville involving guns lands aggressors in jail

Thursday’s road rage incident in Loganville involving a gun was not the first, and was not even the first this year. There also was an incident on Highway 78 in front of CVS back in 2021 that had two motorists actually shooting at each other. The incident this past week didn’t go that far, but it could have. Nor did the one as reported on Feb. 28 in this report, but it too could have.

According to Loganvile Police Chief Dick Lowry, a road rage incident on Highway 78 on April 6 resulted in one man going to jail.

“It was a road rage incident that could have gone very, very bad. It ended up with one of the guys putting a gun out of a window,” Lowry said. “It happened right about lunch time and we had 7 or 8 guys there really quick. We had rifles too so his attitude changed really quickly.”

Lowry said the subject was arrested and went to jail. He used the incident to urge attendees at the April TRIAD meeting on Friday to be cautious on the roads, no matter how annoying it may be when somebody cuts you off.

“Everyone here has been cut off at some point – or accidentally cut someone else off. But you never know who is in these cars – and if you remember we had two guys shooting at each other,” Lowry said, referring to the 2021 incident. “So if that happens to you – just apologize. Don’t let it ruin your day.”

The Loganville Police Department reported the following incidents for the period Feb. 15 – 28, 2023. Please note an arrest or charge does not constitute a conviction.

Feb. 17

• A 39-year-old Duluth man was picked up from Gwinnett County Jail on a failure to appear warrant out of the City of Loganville and transported to Walton County Jail.

Feb. 18

• A 43-year-old Loganville man was charged driving with an expired license and an expired tag and picked up on a warrant after the information was picked up on a tag reader. He was stopped, the warrants confirmed, and he was booked at LPD and transported to the Walton County Jail.
• A 64-year-old Snellville man was arrested for shoplifting, less than $500, and on warrant pickups after he was observed allegedly shoplifting a toolbox from Walmart. He left his vehicle in the parking lot to be picked up by a neighbor and was arrested on three warrants as well as the shoplifting charges.

Feb. 22

• A 19-year-old Loganville resident, who was an employee of Autozone, was arrested on charges of theft by conversion after he allegedly found a way to earn himself an extra $1,186.11 between Nov. 22, 2022 and Jan. 30, 2023. He reportedly sold items, took the money from the customer, then wrote up a fictitious return of the item and pocketed the money. There were 26 such transactions over that period. He was subsequently arrested and transported to Walton County Jail.
• A Monroe woman and a Lawrenceville women charged with failure to yield after stopping at a stop sign and driving without a valid license following a minor collision. Both drivers were cited, the Monroe woman for failing to yield and the Lawrenceville woman for having no license.
• A 69-year-old Loganville man was charged with driving unsafe/improperly equipped vehicle, obscuring tag and for possession of marijuana less than 1 oz after he was seen driving on Highway 10 with sparks emitting from the rear of his vehicle due to the wheel having fallen off. A smell of marijuana was detected and a dry and moist leafy substance was located. The wheel was found in the bed of the truck. The driver told police his son had driven the truck but, based on his statements and condition, the vehicle was towed and he was arrested, booked at LPD and transported to the Walton County jail.
• A 27-year-old Monroe man was picked up from the Newton County Sheriff’s Office on a Failure to Appear bench warrant, booked at LPD and then transported to Walton County Sheriff’s Office.

Feb. 24

• A 37-year-old Loganville man was picked up on a warrant for a probation violation from Gwinnett County Jail, booked at LPD and then transported to Walton County Jail.

Feb. 25

• A 19-year-old Loganville man who was an employee at Walmart was charged with shoplifting, less than $500, after he was seen scanning two drink items and skipping the food item valued at $5. He was booked at LPD and criminally trespassed from Walmart.
• A 41-year-old was charged with driving without a valid license after he was stopped on Tom Brewer Road when he was seen driving at 35 mph in a 55 mph zone with vehicles lined up behind him and then making erratic movements when he moved over to the slow lane. He was stopped for fear of him being impaired, but when his information came back with no driver’s license, he was charged with driving without a valid license and released on a copy of the citation. His vehicle was turned over to his sister per his request.

Feb. 27

• A 28-year-old Loganville man was charged with aggravated assault – gun, pointing or aiming a gun at another and drug related charges when he is alleged to have pointed a gun at another driver in a road rage incident. The female driver of a vehicle phoned to report that a driver in a red SUV had begun to follow her home in her Huntington Ridge subdivision and pulled up next to her, threatening her with a gun, before leaving the subdivision. An officer located the vehicle on Main Street, Loganville, driving at what appeared to be 50 mph in a 25 mph speed zone. When stopped, the driver told the police that the woman had threatened him with a gun when he had honked at her because she was stopping and going as though she was lost lost. He said she moved off the road and when he drove by and wound down his window, she pointed a gun at him. He said he then pulled his own gun before leaning. His wife, who was with him, backed up his story. The other driver, in the meantime was giving her side of the story to police in her Huntington Road subdivision. Her story contradicted the account given by he and his wife. Video proof from surveillance in the neighborhood backed up her story. It reportedly appeared to prove that he shouted threatening obscenities at her while waving a gun out the window. In addition, police located drugs and drug paraphernalia in his red SUV. He was subsequently arrested and transported to Walton County Jail and his wife drove the car home.
• A 37-year-old Loganville man was charged with failure to maintain lane and driving while license suspended following a minor accident on GA 10 at the entrance to the Promenade. The driver of the vehicle who had struck the other one was given a warning for failing to maintain lane and arrested for driving while license suspended.

Feb. 28

• A 21-year-old Norcross man was charged with expired registration, registration and license required and driving while license suspended after the information was picked up on the license plate reader. He was stropped, the information confirmed and he was booked at LPD and released on a copy of the citations.