Child cruelty charges brought against former Barrow resident

Phillip Chad Dunn, 28, fatally stabbed Shelley Dyan Dunn, of Buford, in the parking lot of a Gwinnett County Wal-Mart on Feb. 14. The attack took place when the two met to exchange custody of their daughters.

When police arrived at the Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road store, they found Shelley Dunn unconscious and Phillip Dunn suffering from a self-inflicted knife wound. Both parties were transported to Gwinnett Medical Center where Shelley Dunn was pronounced dead from massive internal bleeding.

Dunn was charged with murder and remains in the Gwinnett County Detention Center without bond.

Dunn was arrested just two weeks before the fatal stabbing by Barrow County Sheriff’s deputies. Dunn was charged with family violence aggravated battery, family violence aggravated assault and family violence battery in connection with a Feb. 1 domestic dispute. Dunn bonded out of the Barrow County Detention Center on Feb. 10, after nine days in confinement.


Indictment handed down in death of Auburn man
A Lilburn man was recently indicted by a Gwinnett County grand jury on two counts of vehicular homicide stemming from a 2009 crash which killed an Auburn man.
Todd Willoughby is facing charges in connection with the New Year’s Day 2009 crash which killed Russell Hays, 32, of Auburn.

Police initially believed that Hays was driving the 1995 Ferrari Spider when it ran off Harmony Grove Church Road and struck a culvert. The vehicle caught fire and burned both men. Hays died in the crash, but Willoughby fled the scene on foot and was found a short time later and transported to Grady Hospital in Atlanta for treatment of his injuries.

A subsequent investigation determined that Willoughby had been driving the vehicle. Willoughby surrendered to police last summer.

Willoughby is accused of driving under the influence of alcohol and reckless driving. He was released on a $38,200 bond.


Bat-wielding woman smashes car windows
It is said that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. A Winder man learned this lesson the hard way when a bat-wielding woman broke several windows on his car and dented the front door of his house after he began dating the woman’s girlfriend.

Vicki Chatham, 51, of 295 East Wright Street in Winder, reportedly became enraged when she learned her girlfriend no longer wanted to be with her and had started dating the Winder man.

Chatham went to the man’s house and repeatedly struck the front door with a bat while cursing him and demanding that he step outside. Chatham’s girlfriend heard the commotion and walked outside to calm the woman before authorities arrived.

When the deputy arrived, he noticed that Chatham was still visibly upset. Chatham said she became angry when she realized her child was with a neighbor and not with her girlfriend. Chatham said she went to the Winder man’s home because she wanted her girlfriend to come home and be with their child. Chatham then admitted she was not the biological mother of the child, but felt the child was hers as well. Chatham said DFACS said the child was hers too and that she did not care what the courts said since Georgia does not honor gay marriage. The deputy advised Chatham that she would have to take up the issue with DFACS at a later date.

Chatham was arrested for disorderly conduct and criminal trespass.


Man strikes power pole
A Social Circle man was arrested after driving his Ford F-250 into a power pole while under the influence.

Police were called to the intersection of Hwy. 211 and Beulah Street after William Shane Parham, 34, of 2849 Clegg Farm Road in Social Circle, crashed his truck into a Georgia Power utility pole.

Parham was unsteady on his feet and fell three times while attempting to retrieve his insurance card from his vehicle.

Parham initially said he fell asleep while driving and ran off the road. Upon further investigation, the officer determined Parham had been driving while under the influence of drugs.

Parham was charged with DUI and transported to the Barrow County Detention Center.


Cujo-like dog attacks beagle
A Winder man called the Sheriff’s Office after his beagle was reportedly bitten by another dog.

The man said he was walking his dog when a large, brown dog came out of a residence and bit his dog.

The man described the attacking dog as looking like the rabid Cujo from the Stephen King movie of the same name.

The deputy wrote that he did not see any injuries on the beagle.


Goat attacked by dogs
A Sheriff’s deputy was dispatched to a Carl Bethlehem Road residence after the homeowner reported her goat had been attacked by two dogs.

Animal control was at the scene when the deputy arrived, but had been unable to locate the dogs.

The goat suffered several injuries from bites to both hind legs, both sides of her body and one ear.

The goat’s owner said she saw a black lab and a black and white pointer biting the goat. The woman said she shot at the dogs with a 20 gauge shot gun in an attempt to stop the attack. The woman said she struck the lab before both dogs fled.

The deputy was unable to locate either dog and turned the scene over to animal control.


Trespassing turtle removed by deputy
A deputy was dispatched to a Lucas Way residence after the homeowner called to report a wild turtle on her front porch.

The 13-inch long turtle was discovered under a table on the woman’s front porch. The woman said she feared the turtle might hurt one of her grandchildren and she requested that the deputy remove it. The woman provided the deputy with a box big enough to hold the turtle and told him he could keep the box when he was finished relocating the animal.

The deputy captured the turtle and released it into a nearby pond.


Cash stash stolen out of freezer
A Hoschton woman called the Sheriff’s Office after learning someone had taken cash that was hidden in her freezer.

The woman said approximately $700 was removed from a money bag which she kept hidden behind a box in the freezer. The woman said the only other people who knew where she had hidden the money were her husband and daughter.

The daughter realized the cash was missing when she attempted to add $40 to the stash.

According to the woman, the only other person who had been inside the house was her daughter’s boyfriend. The daughter said when she asked her boyfriend about the missing money, he became defensive and denied taking it.

The deputy advised the women not to allow the boyfriend to enter the residence again if they believed he was a thief.


Knotted cord causes alarm
A Statham woman made multiple calls to the Sheriff’s Office recently after finding knots in her hair dryer cord.

A deputy was dispatched to Diamond Ridge Road earlier this month after the woman reported hearing noises in her attic. She insisted her ex-husband had been in the house because there was a knot in the cord of her hair dryer.

The following week, a deputy was dispatched to the residence again after the woman said she discovered her sleeping bag and a garage door sensor in her driveway in front of her garage. The woman said she had not been in her garage since December of 2009 and feels her ex-husband broke into the garage, removed the items and placed them in front of the door to make her think she was losing her mind.

The woman then went inside her residence and retrieved her hair dryer. The cord had a knot tied at one end. The woman informed the deputy that the knot signified that her ex-husband had been inside the house and wanted her to know that he had been there.

When the deputy asked how the ex-husband had entered the house, the woman said she did not know but suspected that he might have bugged her home. She also explained that she believes he hides in her attic so that he can find out when she leaves the house.

Later that day, a deputy was again dispatched to the residence when the woman said she heard a noise. The woman said nothing was taken, but the incidents with her ex-husband were an on-going problem.


Grave markers stolen
Thirty-two bronze vases were recently stolen from Barrow Memorial Gardens on Atlanta Highway. The vases are used as grave markers.

A company employee said she began receiving calls on April 1 from individuals informing her that the vases were missing from grave sites. When the graves were checked on April 26, she learned that a total of 32 vases were missing.

The total value of the vases is $8,768.