A Gainesville man was arrested on drug and battery charges for possessing crack cocaine and attempting to swallow a bag of Xanax during a fight with law enforcement.
Justin McKnight, 31, was stopped by Gainesville Police after he ran a stop sign on his bike by 300 SW Fifth Ave. at about 7 p.m. Monday. GPD Officer Robert White noticed that the biker strongly smelled of marijuana. McKnight admitted to having recently smoked, but did not give his consent to being searched when asked, according to a report.
White said McKnight then appeared nervous as backup arrived and started to fight.
While resisting officers, McKnight pulled a vial with pieces of crack cocaine from his pocket and threw it. Officers said he also tried swallowing a bag of Xanax but was unsuccessful.
According to the report, McKnight purposely elbowed Officer Daniel Abbott in the head during the fight as well as tossed White’s police radio from his belt, temporarily preventing him from calling in additional backup.
Even when White used a Taser on him, McKnight continued to fight, grabbing at the officers’ gun belts.
He was arrested on charges of the possession of crack cocaine with intent to sell, possession of Xanax, tampering with evidence, battery on a law enforcement officer, depriving a law enforcement officer of communication and resisting arrest.
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A Gainesville man was arrested after police said he damaged his cousin’s vehicle with a knife at 1700 SW 42nd St.
Carlos Lenard Johnson, 55, made threats to kill his cousin and damage his vehicle within a 24-hour period, according to a report. In some instances, he was armed with a knife.
Following the first attempt to contact his cousin, Johnson was asked to leave the area by law enforcement. While in the presence of officers, he said he was going to “get him,” referring to his cousin.
The third time Johnson went to his cousin’s residence, he damaged his vehicle with a knife at about 11:30 p.m. Monday, causing an estimated $500 worth of damage, according to a report.
He was arrested shortly after midnight Tuesday and charged with aggravated stalking, tampering with evidence and criminal mischief.
[A version of this story ran on page 5 on 9/17/2014 under the headline "Police roundup: Drug possession and battery; stalking "]
