‘Over 75 times...that’s just his state arrests:’ APD encounters repeat offender

ATLANTA — Body camera video showed police arresting Tiffany Hendrix outside Hudson Grill in Midtown last Tuesday.

Police responded to a burglary call at the restaurant and they found Hendrix outside.

This is not his first run-in with the police.

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As a matter of fact, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said this is not his second, third, or even tenth arrest.

“Over 75 times. That’s just his state arrests. That’s his misdemeanors and felonies. There are scrolls of city ordinance arrests. If you add them up, we got to be getting close to 200 at this point,” said Schierbaum.

Channel 2′s Larry Spruill obtained his arrest history dating back to the year 2000. It showed a variety of charges that ranged from Criminal Trespass to Possession of Cocaine.

Spruill asked Chief Schierbaum, how does this happen?

“I’m not sure. I don’t know if those who are making sentencing decisions just don’t have the facts like the police department does or know the impact Mr. Hendrix has on the community,” said Schierbaum.

“We all love Midtown and so does Mr. Hendrix. We often say that,” said Courtney Smith.

Smith lives in Midtown.

She said Hendrix is often in her neighborhood. She doesn’t believe the solution is just locking him up.

“In all reality, he’s a great example of someone who needs mental health and potentially addiction resources. We have tried our best as a community to get those for him,” said Smith.

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“There seems to be a substance abuse issue that needs to be addressed. There appear to be some mental health concerns that need to be addressed. So when we make an arrest, it should never be to lock a person and throw away the key. I think there have been opportunities missed time and time again by the courts and by the programs that are supposed to be assisting Mr. Hendrix and those who are supposed to be monitoring his compliance. It’s not happening,” said Schierbaum.

Schierbaum said Atlanta Police and the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office and District Attorney’s Office have started a ‘Repeat Offender Tracker Unit.’

They’re working on tracking repeat offenders.

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