Man jailed for flashing woman and children has history of exposing himself

Follow Man jailed for flashing woman and children has history of exposing himself

Get notified by email when this case is updated.

Published October 21, 2022 @ 12:12 PM ET

Cherokee County – A Woodstock man who was arrested in August for exposing his genitals on three separate occasions this year has a long history of arrests for ‘indecent exposure.’

Donald Leon Harris, 48, was accused of masturbating near a child in a Woodstock Dollar Tree in March. He was arrested on August 24 and August 26 on warrants relating to two separate incidents in which he exposed himself to a woman and a child in a Canton Kohl’s in July and a Hobby Lobby in August.

Cherokee County court records show that Harris was charged with ‘Public Indecency’ on several occasions beginning in September of 2010. His initial ‘Public Indecency’ charge was dismissed in 2012 and he was convicted of Loitering/Prowling after exposing his genitals in a Woodstock Walmart.

Harris was sentenced to 15 days in jail for the Walmart incident and 12 months on probation. He was fined $1,000. He was ordered to have a psychosexual evaluation and the cost of the exam was deducted from the fine.

The August 26 arrest will mark the fourth ‘Public Indecency’ charge for Harris in Cherokee County.

There are three pending cases against Harris in the State Court of Cherokee County for the incidents dating from March to August of this year.

Harris was identified in March after a Dollar Tree employee took a photo of his license plate as he was fleeing. Harris was caught masturbating in the store, near a child, by the child’s mother. He was beaten with a purse and chased from the store by witnesses and store employees.

Police were able to identify Harris from the license plate photo. He was later arrested on warrants from Canton Police stemming from the Kohl’s and Hobby Lobby incidents.

Harris was released on a $1,500 bond for the August 24 arrest and a $3,000 bond for the August 26 arrest.

Officer’s Narrative:
[Please note: The following is a direct transcription from the officer’s narrative report. We do not fix any spelling or grammatical errors. Any changes made by our staff are placed inside brackets. Some errors may exist.]

[NARRATIVE #1 on March 19, 2022]

On Saturday, March 19, 2022, at approximately 11:36 AM, I responded to the Dollar Tree located at, 6426 Bells Ferry Road, Woodstock, in reference to a report of public indecency. Dispatch advised a male exposed himself to the caller’s daughter before leaving the scene, in a gray Ram truck with GA license plate number, [REDACTED]. The suspect was described as a white male with blonde hair, wearing a hat and a red shirt. The gray Ram truck was last seen crossing Bells Ferry Road headed toward the WalMart parking lot.

When I arrived, I spoke with [WITNESS #1] outside the store. [WITNESS #1] said she was inside the Dollar Tree when she witnessed a man expose himself to her daughter, [VICTIM #1]. I then began speaking with witnesses, so I could gather the best possible description of the suspect and his vehicle for other officers patrolling the area.

[WITNESS #2] said she witnessed, [WITNESS #3], and a Dollar Tree employee, chasing the male out of the store and to his gray Ram truck. She then followed the truck as it left, crossing Bells Ferry Road, and entering the WalMart parking lot, where she lost visual on the truck. [WITNESS #2] drove through the WalMart parking lot, searching for the Ram, but was unable to find it. She believes the driver exited onto Eagle Drive.

[WITNESS #4] said he was driving through the parking lot and saw the male being chased by [WITNESS #3] and a Dollar Tree employee. Believing [WITNESS #3] might be in trouble, [WITNESS #4] stopped to see if he could help. He saw the gray Ram truck leave in the direction of Bells Ferry Road.

[WITNESS #5] said she was inside the store near the front windows, when she witnessed [WITNESS #3] chasing the male toward the front door. She said she saw [WITNESS #3] strike the male with her purse, before he fled out the door and to his truck. [WITNESS #5] said the male almost struck the Dollar Tree employee with the truck as he was fleeing.

I then asked [WITNESS #3] and [VICTIM #1] if we could go inside, so they could walk me through the events. [VICTIM #1] stood in the aisle where she had been looking at greeting cards. Approximately half the length of the aisle, it connects to the next aisle over. [WITNESS #3] said the area where the aisles connect, is where the male suspect was standing. [WITNESS #3] then stood where she had been when she first noticed him. She said she saw the male with his pen*s out of his pants and mast*rbating. [WITNESS #3] said the male was looking at [VICTIM #1] while he was mast*rbating.

I stood in the spot where [WITNESS #3] said the male had been. From that spot, I had a clear line of sight to both [WITNESS #3] and [VICTIM #1]. When [WITNESS #3] noticed the male mast*rbating, she confronted him and asked what he was doing. She said the male then walked past her and toward the front of the store, as if he was ignoring her.

As he walked past her, [WITNESS #3] said she hit him in the back with her purse. The purse [WITNESS #3] used was a small, black bag, that she had hanging around her neck. The purse straps did not appear to be causing any strain on [WITNESS #3]’s neck, so the purse seemed to be fairly lightweight and likely would not have caused any harm to the male.

[WITNESS #3] said she continued to ask the male what he was doing and called him a “pervert.” The male then began running through the store and exited through the front door. [WITNESS #3] followed him to his truck, where she attempted to take a picture of his license plate, but was unable to do so. She then saw the truck leave the parking lot.

I asked [WITNESS #3] if I could speak with [VICTIM #1] separately, and she said I could. [VICTIM #1] said she was inside the Dollar Tree looking at greeting cards when she heard her mother confronting someone. She looked up to see her mother chasing the male through the store and out the front door. [VICTIM #1] did not say she saw the male’s pen*s or knew he was mast*rbating. I provided [WITNESS #3] with a case card and told her the case would be forwarded to Investigators. I also provided her with the phone number for the Criminal Investigations Division.

The only surveillance camera I noticed in the area belonged to, Chloe’s Auto Repair. I spoke with [WITNESS #6], the Owner Operator of the shop, who said she believed their surveillance camera would be able to see the suspect’s vehicle. I provided [WITNESS #6] with a case card, and she said she would contact me with any video footage she could locate. Later in the day, I spoke with [WITNESS #6] again via telephone. [WITNESS #6] said the surveillance camera showed the gray Ram entering the parking lot, as well as the male being chased out of the Dollar Tree and leaving. She said she would be able to email the video to me within the next two days.

Last, I spoke with [WITNESS #7], the Dollar Tree employee who chased the male out of the store. [WITNESS #7] said he had just arrived to work when he saw [WITNESS #1] chasing the male suspect out of the store. [WITNESS #7] also began chasing the male and was able to take a photograph of the Ram’s license plate. He said the Ram almost struck him while the truck was backing up. I asked [WITNESS #7] if he was afraid for his safety when the truck almost struck him, and he replied he was “shaken up.” He described the suspect as a tall, white mall, wearing a red shirt with baggy pants and possibly a mask. [WITNESS #7]’s photo of the license plate has been attached to the case folder.

The license plate on the suspect’s truck, GA tag number [REDACTED], returns to a gray Ram 1500 registered to [REDACTED] and Donald Harris out of Canton. Donald’s driver’s license lists him as 5 foot 11 inches tall, and his photo shows him as a white male. Since the truck is listed in his name, and he fits the description of the male, Donald is the current suspect.

[End of Narrative]

On August 24, 2022, at approximately 12:50 pm, I was dispatched to [200 BLOCK] Glenwood Drive for a wanted subject out of Canton.

I was advised by dispatch that the City of Canton Police Department (PD) had warrants out for a male subject, identified as Donald Harris, who resided at the above address. I was also informed to contact Detective Fulenwider at the City of Canton PD if I had visual of Harris’ truck, a gray Dodge Ram. I arrived at the residence a few minutes later and observed the gray Dodge Ram pickup backed up in the driveway.

I then called Detective Fulenwider and informed her that the truck was at the residence. Fulenwider then emailed me a copy of the warrant for Harris and I waited up the street from Harris’ residence until Ofc. Adams could arrive so that I could talk to Harris. A Detective with Canton PD arrived a short time later, along with Ofc. Adams, and the three of us approached Harris’ residence on foot. Upon arrival, the Detective with Canton PD and I went to the front door, to which Harris answered. The Detective explained to Harris that he had a warrant out for his arrest, at which point, I placed Harris in handcuffs.

Harris’ arms were placed behind his back and handcuffs placed on his wrist. The handcuffs were checked for proper spacing and double locked. Harris was searched incident to arrest for weapons and contraband prior to transport to the Cherokee County Jail. Harris was placed in the backseat of my patrol vehicle, where the seatbelt was then placed across Harris prior to transport. I then transported Harris to the Cherokee County Jail, where he was then booked in by Deputies with the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office. The backseat of my patrol vehicle was checked prior to and post transport of Harris to the Cherokee County Jail.

[End of Narrative]