Stephen Klinesmith

Name of Accused:
Klinesmith, Stephen Andrew

Date of Arrest:
08/16/2024


Charges For Arrest:
Public Drunk
Obstruction of LEO (M)
Unlawful Conduct During 911 Call by Using Obscene/Vulgar/Obscene Language to Intimidate/Harass 911 (M)
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 8/16/2024
at approximately 0105 hours, I was dispatched to [6700 BLOCK] Carterville Highway in reference to a welfare check. Dispatch advised that the caller wanted us to check on his two children because he didn’t feel comfortable with them at his ex-wife’s father’s house. The caller also wanted us to pass the following message: “Do not bother my children, do not get them off their routine, do not disrespect them, that they need to be in school tomorrow.”
I ed the complainant/suspect, Stephen Klinesmith, by phone. Mr. Klinesmith was very aggressive on the one phone, using profanity towards me, and even stated that he would “kick in a fu*king.” Mr. Klinesmith asked if I served in Afghanistan or Iraq. Mr. Klinesmith also told me to take off my gun and badge. Mr. Klinesmith even told me his address and stated that I bet I won’t be there. I explained to Mr. Klinesmith that he could call back tomorrow at a reasonable time to check on his children. Mr. Klinesmith was still acting irate. I hung up the phone as I felt that the conversation was not going forward direction.
Mr. Klinesmith called 911 4 additional times, and during the conversations with 911, he used profanity toward the dispatchers. Mr. Klinesmith also called our sheriff’s office twice, using profanity towards the employees in GCIC. We decided that Mr. Klinesmith would be taken into custody due to his misuse of 911 and constant calling to the sheriff’s office.
Deputy Bowling, Deputy Hall, and I went to Mr. Klinesmith’s , and upon arrival, Mr. Klinesmith was yelling at a house across the street, which wasn’t his . Mr. Klinesmith refused to come to us but went inside his and returned outside with a beer in his hand. Mr. Klinesmith was being loud and using profanity, and at one point, he asked Deputy Bowling if he wanted to “mutual combat.” It was apparent that he was under the influence of alcohol.
The decision was made to arrest Mr. Klinesmith due to his demeanor and misuse of 911. Mr. Klinesmith began to pull away from the deputies. I told Mr. Klinesmith that he was going to get tased and pointed my department-issued Taser at him. Deputies were able to gain control of Mr. Klinesmith’s arms. Mr. Klinesmith continued to resist the deputy’s efforts to place him under arrest. Deputies were able to handcuff Mr. Klinesmith behind his back. While walking Mr. Klinesmith toward the patrol vehicle, he continued to resist efforts to place him in the patrol vehicle. I placed my fingers in Mr. Klinesmith’s pressure points just under his left and right jaw area to gain compliance as he was actively resisting.
Mr. Klinesmith was put into leg shackles to make it easier to place him in the patrol vehicle. Mr. Klinesmith wedged himself in between the patrol car door and the partition of the prisoner cage. Mr. Klinesmith was pulled across the back seat to get him inside of the patrol vehicle. I transported Mr. Klinesmith to the Paulding County Detention Center. While en route to the jail, Mr. Klinesmith slammed his head against the cage several times. I didn’t observe any injuries to Mr. Klinesmith once at the jail. I completed the use of force form and warrants for Mr. Klinesmith.
[End of Narrative]