NEWBERRY — A deputy with the Newberry County Sheriff’s Office is recovering from injuries he received last week when a driver stopped at a traffic safety checkpoint decided he wanted to flee, dragging the deputy a short distance before crashing the vehicle.
When it was all over, deputies recovered marijuana, cocaine and two handguns from the driver and the passenger, both of whom were also injured and taken to the hospital for treatment.
“These are the life and death situations law enforcement officers are faced with every day,” said Sheriff Lee Foster. “We are so blessed and thankful that the deputy was not seriously injured but is a constant reminder of constant danger law enforcement faces.”
The suspects were identified as Adonis Martel Johnson of 3443 S.C. 773 in Pomaria and LeTravis Ouzts, 26, of 2409 Vincent St. in Newberry.
Ouzts, who was released from the hospital Jan. 6, was charged with assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, failure to stop for a law enforcement vehicle, unlawful possession of a weapon, possession with intent to distribute cocaine, possession with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
His bond was set at $10,000.
Johnson, who is still in the hospital, will be charged with possession with intent to distribute marijuana, unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of drug paraphernalia and a probation violation. Johnson was wearing an ankle monitor when he was arrested.
According to the Newberry County Sheriff’s Office:
Deputies were conducting a traffic safety checkpoint on Jan. 4 on Whitener Road near Wilson Road when a light-colored vehicle approached the checkpoint around 12:40 a.m.
Deputies could smell the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle and when they asked the driver for his license, he said he did not have one. The driver took off with the deputy still in the window of the vehicle, dragging him a short distance before he fell to the ground.
A short chase ensued and the vehicle crashed into an embankment at the intersection of Kendall Road and Gray Street.
More than 48 grams of marijuana and approximately eight grams of cocaine were found during a search of the vehicle along with two handguns that the two had been wearing in holsters prior to the wreck.
Foster said the incident could have played out very differently had the driver not wrecked the car when he did.
“Here you have two suspects who were armed and carrying illegal drugs and as if this were not dangerous enough, they then decided to intentionally injure this officer and then lead law enforcement on a chase endangering many other people,” Foster said. “Because of their collision, this was a short chase but I am convinced that had they not wrecked, this chase would have continued and could have well ended in shoot out.”
Foster said the actions of the two men “shows the willful disregard” for law enforcement and the safety of the community.
“We will continue to stand in the gap between the good people of Newberry County and those who chose to continually and willfully disregard the law and endanger the public through reckless actions and the intentional use and sale of illegal drugs in our community,” he said.
“It is the people who chose to possess and use guns illegally that shed a negative light on firearms,” he added. “Instead of a blanket approach to firearms, we need to deal more harshly with the criminals who use them illegally while insuring the rights of those who own and possess weapons lawfully.”