James Bentley

Name:
Bentley, James Donald

Date of Booking:
05/07/2023

Reason(s) For Booking:
AFFRAY (FIGHTING)

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.]

[NARRATIVE #1 on May 07, 2023]

On 5/7/23, at approximately 1400, I, Dep. Glenn responded to the Publix parking lot at 2061 Experiment Station Rd in reference to a fight. The complainant told dispatch that two males were on the ground, rolling around, exchanging blows. The complainant told us that the men were between Publix and Verizon and gave us clothing descriptions of both. Before our arrival, one of the men fled the scene. When we arrived, we made contact with the man who remained on scene. He told us the name of the other party involved and Dep. Schiffer asked him to return to the scene.

When asked what had taken place, the man told me that his girlfriend had called and told him to meet her at Publix because her food stamps had been loaded onto her card. When he arrived, he saw Mr. Bentley’s car in the parking lot, and went inside the store. His girlfriend reportedly told him previously that Mr. Bentley would not leave her alone. His girlfriend and Mr. Bentley were together in the grocery store shopping. Words were exchanged inside the grocery store, then continued outside after the grocery purchase was made. After arguing, the man began walking away. Mr. Bentley followed, and the argument escalated. The man said that he couldn’t remember everything that took place but remembered that Mr. Bentley put his finger in his face repeatedly. The man said that he ended up of the ground with Mr. Bentley on top of him, and punched him several times to get away. Mr. Bentley left the scene after getting up from the ground. The man had visible injuries, and National EMS was called to the scene to check him out.

When Mr. Bentley returned to the scene, he told me the other man should be arrested for assault. He said that he purposely baited the other man so that he would hit him and go to jail. After the argument at the vehicle, when the other man walked away, Mr. Bentley followed, but told me that he was only trying to put his shopping cart up. He told me that the man pulled out a knife and opened it when he got close to him. Mr. Bentley advanced on the man, pointing in his face, saying, “So you’re going to stab me?” After pointing in his face, Mr. Bentley said that the other man grabbed him by the back of the neck and threw him on the ground. He told me that the man hit him about four times before he was able to get away. Mr. Bentley claimed to have not thrown a punch and said that he was underneath the man the entire time.

Mr. Bentley had a large contusion on his left cheek, while the other man had a deep laceration on his finger and large bleeding scrape on his elbow. Based on both statements, I decided to charge both parties. Mr. Bentley was arrested on scene, and warrants were taken on the other man since his injuries required treatment at a hospital. Both men were given information on the warrant application process since they were wanting to pursue more serious charges. A knife was confiscated from the other man and logged into evidence.

[End of Narrative]

[NARRATIVE #2 on May 07, 2023]

On May [7], 2023, I, Deputy W. Reynolds #3621, responded to Publix to assist with a fight call. I recorded parking lot video footage from the Publix security camera monitor with my county-issued Mobil Data Terminal (MDT). The footage was uploaded onto a flash drive and submitted to the Administrative File. A photograph taken on scene of a blood field test taken from a pocket knife was attached to this report.

[End of Narrative]