According to a Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office incident report, On March 5th, 2023, at 12:04 PM, the Whitfield County 911 Center (Dispatch) advised there was a vehicle coming into the county via I-75 south and advised all units to be on the lookout (BOLO) for the vehicle. Lt. Gibson responded to the area and attempted to locate the vehicle. The concerned citizen and 911 caller reported the vehicle had almost struck other vehicles multiple times, was swerving in all three lanes, and eventually pulled over in the area of mile marker 330. According to the report, “Lt. Gibson observed the vehicle’s left front tire was deflated, and the vehicle was beginning to lose parts onto the roadway as the deteriorating tire caused further damage to the vehicle. The vehicle was also traveling at an extremely slow rate of speed, causing traffic to have to swerve around her, almost causing a crash. Lt. Gibson was able to get behind the vehicle, and he activated his blue lights in order to initiate a traffic stop on the vehicle.” Lt. Gibson made contact with the driver, later identified as Annsleigh Abigail Ray, 24, of LaFayette, who stated that she was trying to get to a gas station. Lt. Gibson asked Ray what happened to her tire, but she could not explain the damage to the tire or the fender area. According to the report, “While speaking with Mrs. Ray, he observed that she exhibited ptosis (droopy eyelids), her speech was slow, and she appeared to be disoriented due to not knowing where she was. Mrs. Ray later expressed to Deputy Center that she believed that she was still in Tennessee, almost to Chattanooga. Mrs. Ray explained that she was coming from Jackson, Tn, and she was trying to get to Rome, GA. Mrs. Ray explained that she was just very tired, and she was trying to get to her property in Rome.” During field sobriety tests, Ray showed several signs of drug impairment. Ray was then placed under arrest for DUI and agreed to the state test but would later refuse. During a search of the vehicle, Lt. Gibson located cocaine. Lt. Gibson transported Ray to the Whitfield County Jail. Lt. Gibson explained that he was a Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) with extensive training in impairment and asked Ray if he could do further testing, and she agreed. Officer Selby with the Dalton Police Department, who is also a DRE, assisted Lt. Gibson with the evaluation. According to the report, “During the drug influence evaluation, the DRE’s observed several general and clinical manifestations of impairment, as well as several validated clues of impairment during psychophysical tests. In the conclusion of the drug influence evaluation, it was the opinion of the DRE’s that Mrs. Ray was impaired from drug use to the extent that she was unable to operate a vehicle safely. See the DRE evaluation narrative and face sheet for further information about the evaluation. ” Ray was charged with impeding the flow of traffic, operating an unsafe vehicle, tire requirement, DUI drugs less safe, and possession of cocaine. According to online records, Ray has previous arrests for DUI drugs.
LaFayette woman arrested again for DUI drugs after 911 call from concerned citizen on I-75
