Police said a shoplifting suspect yelled at officers, bit them and then stole a patrol cruiser in Snellville on Friday.
According to Snellville’s police chief, officers were called to the Home Depot on Scenic Highway to take the Demetra Clay into custody after she was allegedly caught stealing $90 worth of cleaning solvent.
Witnesses say it took three workers and a Snellville police officer to get Clay, 50, on the ground and handcuffed, but they say she kept fighting.
“She was Tased one time when she was kicking and fighting, but it really had very little effect on her,” said Snellville Police Chief Roy Whitehead.
They say the arresting officer did not lock the glass window separating the front seat from the back.
“She was able to get the cuffs in front of her and pulled the window open. She climbed through the window and into the front seat,” Whitehead said.
Clay was able to drive it about 50 feet, dragging one officer and running over another officer’s arm, before crashing it into a concrete pole.
Police say she continued to bite at officers, eventually telling them that she was on drugs.
“Her big request was that she not go to jail, but obviously that wasn’t going to happen,” said Whitehead.
Clay was transported to Gwinnett County Jail, where she faces 12 criminal charges.
FOX 5’s Chris Shaw said that records show that Clay was arrested two times last year, both times for shoplifting.
The injured officer was released from the hospital. Doctors believe he could have a broken wrist.