Tassius Small

Name:
Small, Tassius Vermares

Date of Booking:
08/22/2026

Reason(s) For Booking:
DUI – Driving under the influence of alcohol

Failure to Maintain Lane

Driving on wrong side of roadway

TOO FAST FOR CONDITIONS (Basic Rules)

Driving without license in possession

Officer’s Narrative:
[Please note: The following is a direct transcription from the official initial incident report. The Georgia Gazette does not fix any spelling or grammatical errors that may exist. Any changes or redactions made by our staff are placed inside brackets. Some errors may exist. All subjects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The topics discussed may be sensitive to some readers. Discretion is advised.]

On Saturday, August 22nd 2026 at approximately 2:00 AM, I, PFC Scott Kent, responded to the Turner McCall Blvd bridge near Hicks Dr in reference to a vehicle that struck the bridge. See accident report 2605313RPD. The vehicle was a red Jeep Cherokee bearing Georgia registration [REDACTED].

Upon my arrival, Officer Hart had already arrived and saw the occupants leaving the scene on foot toward MLK Blvd. I found officer Hart and the occupants of the vehicle on the bridge halfway between Hicks Dr and MLK Blvd. One of the occupants, Tassius Small, was identified as the driver of the vehicle due to his admission. When asked for his license, Tassius told me that it was in the car. When asked what happened, Tassius told me that he hydro-plained and lost control. There was no water on the roadway.

While talking to Tassius, I noticed that he had slurred speech, an odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person, and that he had had some trouble maintaining his balance. I asked Tassius how much he had to drink. He told me that he hadn’t had anything to drink since he got off work at 2:00 PM. I asked Tassius if he would mind performing some evaluations so that I could make sure he wasn’t impaired. He submitted.

I started with the horizontal gaze nystamgus evaluation. During the evaluation, I observed Tassius swaying. I went on to observe equal tracking, equal pupil size, lack of smooth pursuit, distinct and sustained nystagmus at maximum deviation, and onset nystagmus prior to 45 degrees in both eyes for a total of 6 clues. Vertical Nystagmus was not present.

Next, I gave the instructions for the walk and turn evaluation. During the instructional phase, Tassius expressed to me several times that he understood the instructions. Also during the instructional phase, I observed Tassius start too soon. During the walking phase, I observed Tassius stop while walking, step off the line, miss heel to toe, and take the incorrect number of steps (13 steps on second set of nine steps) for a total of 5 clues.

Lastly, I gave the instructions for the one leg stand evaluation. During the instructional phase, Tassius expressed to me several times that he understood the instructions. During the balancing phase, I observed Tassius sway, use his arms for balance, and put his foot down for a total of 3 clues.

Given my observations, It was clear to me that Tassius was under the influence of alcohol to the extent that he was less safe to drive. I placed him udner arrest for DUI, double locked the handcuffs, and searched him incident to arrest. I then placed him in the backseat of my patrol car and read to him the Georgia Implied Consent Notice using DDS #354. I asked Tassius to submit to the state administered chemical test of his blood. He refused to answer the question and asked his friend several times to call his family members so that they could bond him out of jail. I asked Tassius again and he submitted.

I moved my patrol car closer to the crash scene and searched the vehicle incident to arrest. I did not find any open containers or other contraband, nor did I find Tassius’ license. I did notice that there was some warm food from Taco Bell on the passenger floorboard. This led me to believe that Tassius had just left the Taco Bell on Turner McCall Blvd. I took a closer look at the crash scene to gain a better understanding of what happened.

Due to the tire marks in the roadway and the amount of damage that was done to his car and the bridge, it was clear to me that Tassius was driving North, in the right hand lane, on Turner McCall Blvd approaching Hicks Dr when he was driving too fast for the conditions of the roadway, lost control of his vehicle, failed to maintain his lane by crossing the left hand white dashed lines, crossed over the center line, drove on the wrong side of the roadway, and struck the bridge.

I then transported Tassius to Atrium Health Floyd for medical clearance. While at the hospital, Tassius refused to submit to the blood test. I read to him the same implied consent notice as before and still asked him to submit to the state administered chemical test of his blood. He refused stating “Hell Nah”. After being cleared, I transported Tassius to the Floyd County Jail where he was booked in without incident. While at the jail, I completed the necessary paperwork, including an ALS form.

[End of Narrative]