Inside Police Reports: Hammer Time

If a Dunwoody man had stayed home on Saturday, it is possible he would not have left Lilburn with a hammer gash to the head.

Alas, he was in Lilburn parked at the Plaza Hill Plaza along Pleasant Hill Road when police received his call for assistance.

About 1:30 a.m., Lilburn city police arrived to the scene and noticed blood coming from the victim's forehead and covering then neck of his T-shirt, according to a police report. With the alleged weapon in hand, the victim was instructed to place the hammer in the grass.

Emergency medical units responded next, but the victim refused to go to the hospital -- against the wishes of professionals.

According to the victim's account, he has walked back to his vehicle, only to find a group of people sitting on it. Some jumped off, and got inside to wait for a friend arriving shortly.

That's when someone uttered the words, "You want problem, dude?" As the victim's friend pulled in to park next to him, another person asked if he wanted "to get popped?"

When the victim tried to get back out of his car, one of the other men hit him in the head with a hammer, the police report stated.

The victim told police "that he tried to defend himself, but more people, approximately ten, became involved, so he jumped back in his car."

According to the report, the victim tried to flee in his vehicle, but the perpetrators hit his car with the hammer, as well. And, while talking to the security person at the plaza, the suspects were throwing metal objects from an upper floor down at the vehicle. 

Eventually, he sped off, and called police. The suspects involved scattered, some in the direction of apartment complex.

Not only where additional officers called to assist in the search for the alleged hammer-hitter and his friends, but K-9 units also arrived. A group of males were seen near the intersection of Beaver Ruin Road and Burns Road, and were subsequently interviewed.

According to the police report, all total those five people -- one adult and four juveniles -- were rounded up to see if the victim could identify them. The victim later said that the clothing matched of the adult male, but that he could not be be positive about the man's facial features. Without his glasses, the victim also said he really couldn't be sure about the other four individuals.

All four juveniles were released to parents or guardians, and notified of the violation of the state curfew law.

It was later discovered that a juvenile involved had an outstanding warrant for affray, also known as fighting, and disorderly conduct. Police went to his home, arrested him, and hauled him into the county's youth detention facility.