No report made regarding search for fugitive

As a result, Billings filed a lawsuit last month which accuses the Winder Police of false arrest, false imprisonment, illegal search and invasion of privacy.

Dispatch records from Barrow County Central Communications and the Winder Police Department show that three deputies and four Winder officers were at Billings’ home for approximately 20 minutes.

Though Winder officials say none of the four Winder officers wrote a report documenting the incident, one of the Sheriff’s deputies did.

In his report, the deputy wrote that upon arrival he went to the rear of the residence while other law enforcement officials went to the front door.

The reporting deputy heard a shout and went to the front of the residence where he saw two Winder police investigators interviewing Billings’ son.

The deputy noted that “there was no forced entry to the residence.” However, the deputy also indicated that by the time he arrived at the front of the house, another deputy and Winder police were already inside the residence searching for Quincy Smith. The deputy assisted with the unsuccessful search.

When the deputy exited the residence, he noted that one of the Winder investigators was still speaking with the juvenile. He wrote, “As we were walking toward the roadway, a blue vehicle arrived at the residence. She was an elderly female inside the vehicle [who] asked what was going on.”

The elderly female was the juvenile’s grandmother.

Billings said police assertions that her mother or her son gave consent to search the home are completely false. Billings said the fact that her mother arrived home after the house was searched prove her claim that the search was unlawful and without consent.

NO SEARCH WARRANT
On March 26, the Barrow Journal submitted an open records request to the Winder Police Department asking for copies of any written report, dispatch log, search warrant or electronic communications generated or received in connection with the April 16, 2009 search for Quincy Smith on Pinerock Road.

In a written response dated March 29, Winder City Clerk Sabrina Wall wrote that no written report and no search warrant were available. Wall did provide a two page dispatch log along with 11 brief audio clips of Winder radio traffic from the day in question. In total, Winder officials provided less than five minutes of audio in response to the open records request.

In the audio files, Winder Police investigator Missy Towe, the investigator who obtained the warrants against Quincy Smith, advised that she would be at 160 Pinerock Road and had county units with her.

In another clip, the dispatcher informed an unidentified male that other Winder units were enroute to Pinerock Road. The dispatcher said to the male, “She just wants us to be in the outskirts in case he runs.”

In the sixth clip, Towe can be heard asking the dispatcher, “Can you look up 158 Pinerock and advise me the resident’s name?”

Dispatch advised that Winder Police had never been to the location and asked Towe if she would like dispatch to call City Hall and check. Towe said no.

In the following audio clip, Towe informed dispatch that she was at 194 Pinerock Road.

During the last audio clip, which lasted 16 seconds, Towe advised dispatch that units were leaving the scene.

None of the clips provided were time or date stamped.

The longest clip, at one minute and 22 seconds in length, recorded a call from Dana Billings.

“I want to know who are the individuals that are conducting the Quincy Smith investigation? Who’s the chief? Who [are the ones] who enforced the warrant? I need to speak to somebody,” Billings said.

The dispatcher called Captain Dennis Dorsey and said that Billings wanted to speak to someone in charge regarding the search for Smith.

“I tried to find John and he did not answer and all the investigators are out looking for [Smith],” the dispatcher said.

After Dorsey agreed to speak with Billings, the dispatcher transferred the call.

No further information was provided by Winder officials.

An additional open records request was submitted on April 1, 2010. As of press time, officials have yet to provide the requested documentation.

ANOTHER SEARCH
Early last week, details surfaced regarding another potentially unlawful search by authorities.

In that incident, which occurred two hours prior to the search of the Pinerock Road home, a woman awoke to the sound of loud banging on her door.

When she opened the door, she said officers surrounded her with their guns drawn and forced her to the floor. The woman said her home was searched without her consent.

According to the woman, two Winder investigators, Missy Towe and Christopher Stapleton, informed her they had received an anonymous tip that Smith was at the location.

Shortly after the incident, a concerned friend of the woman contacted the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office. The man said he spoke with Colonel Jimmy Lomax and later with Sheriff Jud Smith regarding the matter. The man was advised to contact the Winder Police Department regarding the incident.

When asked, Sheriff Smith said he remembered the incident, but did not know if his deputies had produced a report.

Smith said he intended to speak with the deputies involved to obtain further information.