Name:
Knowles, Karen
Date of Booking:
09/10/2022
Reason(s) For Booking:
DUI LESS SAFE DRIVER
FAILURE TO MAINTAIN LANE
OPEN CONTAINER
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 09/10/2022 I responded to an accident at Fredrica Academy. When I arrived on scene, I made sure that all parties involved in the accident were okay. I spoke to driver 1, Karen Knowles, first who told me, “I guess I clipped them.” I asked for Miss Knowles driver’s license and went to speak to the occupants of vehicle 2, [VICTIM #1] and [VICTIM #2].
[VICTIM #2] told me that they were heading East on Demere Rd at Brockington Street when Miss Knowles pulled out of Brockington Street to head West and leave the Island. [VICTIM #2] stated that when Miss Knowles turned onto Demere Rd she turned into their lane and struck their vehicle. I saw slight damage to the driver’s side/front bumper of their vehicle and approximately the same area on Miss Knowles vehicle.
I went back to speak with Miss Knowles and asked her why she left the scene of an accident. Miss Knowles told me that she didn’t know she hit the other vehicle. I asked Miss Knowles what she had been doing this evening and she told me she was at a friends watching the Georgia Bulldogs game. While I was speaking with Miss Knowles I smelled the odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from her person. I asked Miss Knowles if she had been drinking tonight and she told me she had a few alcoholic beverages. Miss Knowles stated that she had a couple Bud Light Platinums (3 to be exact). While I was speaking with Knowles I noticed that she was slurring her words particularly when she told me she was drinking Bud Light Platinums. I looked at her eyes and they appeared to be glossy and red.
I went back to [VICTIM #2] and [VICTIM #1] to give them a case report card and let them leave.
I returned to speak with Miss Knowles moments later. When I went back to speak with Miss Knowles I ordered her out of the vehicle. Miss Knowles stumbled and fell into her car door when she exited her vehicle. I asked Miss Knowles if she had any medical issues that would make it difficult for her to take a test. Miss Knowles stated that she did not. I asked if she would be willing to take a test for me and she refused. I asked Miss Knowles if she would be willing to give a sample of her breath and she told me that she would not. I read implied consent to Miss Knowles and asked her if she would be willing to submit to a chemical test of her blood and she refused.
At this point, I placed Miss Knowles under arrest for DUI, Less Safe and placed her in the back of my patrol vehicle.
I briefly searched Miss Knowles vehicle for anything related to the DUI charge. While searching Miss Knowles vehicle, I found a cup in the center console with beer in it. I found 1 empty Bud Light Platinum can and 1 empty Bud Light Platinum bottle in a grocery bag on the passenger/side front floorboard. I opened a cooler on the passenger/front seat and found a 10 pack of fireball whiskey with 4 missing bottles. There were about 6 more unopened cans of Bud Light Platinum in the cooler also.
I cited Miss Knowles for failure to maintain lane for the accident, open container (driver) and DUI, less safe. While filling out the citations I made the mistake of using Demere Road and Retreat Village instead of Demere and Brockington Drive where the accident actually occurred. [VICTIM #2] had stated that he was going to Chick Fil A and I had the intersection of Chick Fil A in my head when I was quickly writing the citations to try to expedite the process and get Miss Knowles out of my vehicle quicker. The citations should actually have been for Demere Rd and Brockington Drive.
I transported Miss Knowles to the hospital for medical clearance due to her being involved in a motor vehicle accident. While I was in route to the hospital and at the hospital Miss Knowles was very belligerent with me. She call me and as*hole on numerous occasions even though I was perfectly polite to her. She accused me of shutting off the AC vents in the back of my patrol vehicle even after I explained that there were no AC vents in the back.
At one point Miss Knowles apologized to me and I told her we all make mistakes. Miss Knowles then asked me where I was taking her and I told her to the hospital for medical clearance. Miss Knowles accused me of bringing her there to embarrass her and told me that she knew I didn’t need medical clearance because she worked at a jail. I told Miss Knowles that there are different rules in place at every jail but she continued to accuse me of taking her to the hospital to embarrass her. Miss Knowles was slurring her words and smelled strongly of an alcoholic beverage while she was speaking to me in the car.
When we got to the hospital Miss Knowles lost one of her flip flops when she got out of the car and was unable to put it back on. Miss Knowles was unsteady on her feat when I held her arm walking into the ER. When we went inside Miss Knowles demanded to speak with the shift supervisor. The nurses on staff asked why she wanted to and she told them that she worked there. Both nurses advised Miss Knowles that it was a bad idea to request a supervisor but she continued to ask to speak with one.
A supervisor arrived to speak with Miss Knowles and she broke down crying and whispered something to him. Miss Knowles then told him that she couldn’t go to jail and he told her that there was nothing he could do about it. Shortly after arriving, Miss Knowles was cleared for the jail. I transported Miss Knowles to GCDC.
[End Of Narrative]