Around the Region: Man Exposes Himself While Driving, Kroger Loses Multi-Million Dollar Lawsuit and Three Women Arrested in Valentine’s Day Brawl

Driver Arrested After Having 'Personal Moment' – Cartersville Patch

A man admitted to having a "personal moment" not intended to be public while driving on Interstate 75 after the incident was captured on video.

Bartow County Sheriff's Office authorities say about 9:30 a.m. yesterday, deputies were notified the man was exposing himself and issued a BOLO or "be on the lookout." The witness, who had called 911, provided video of the alleged crime and the man's car.

Along with a Georgia State Patrol trooper, a deputy spotted the car and pulled over Mark Allen Cruver, 41, of Fayetteville. Police say Cruver admitted to committing indecent exposure, was arrested and charged with the crime, and booked into jail and released on a $2,000 cash bond.

Douglasville Man Awarded $2.3 Million in Lawsuit Against Kroger –Douglasville Patch

Douglasville resident Craig Walters, 49, received an award of $2,365,238.40 after a Gwinnett County judge determined that Kroger destroyed and manipulated evidence.

A jury awarded Walters the money Jan. 27 based on an incident that happened in May 2008 while he was shopping at the Kroger grocery store on Ridge Road in Douglasville.

According to that news release from the Bell Law Firm, Walters slipped on some crushed fruit on the floor near the grocery's deli area and fell on his back. He suffered a spinal injury that required back-fusion surgery and the placement of rods and screws to stabilize his spine.

Walters had almost $135,000 in medical bills and couldn't work. 

Gwinnett State Court Judge Joseph Iannazzone determined Kroger had destroyed the video evidence and “acted in bad faith in failing to preserve the evidence and manipulating evidence to excuse its actions,” the news release said.

As a result, the judge determined as a matter of law that Kroger was 100 percent negligent for the fall.

Valentine's Day Brawl at Walmart Lands Three in Jail – Oconee Patch

A quarrel broke out near the nail salon inside Walmart about 3 p.m. on Feb. 14 between two women who reportedly have children by the same father, according to an incident report on file at the Oconee County Sheriff's Office.

A 25-year-old Athens woman told deputies she saw her son's 45-year-old grandmother at the nail salon and went to talk to her when she was forced to defend herself against a 30-year-old Crawford woman with whom she's had problems before. She said the woman began to hit her. However, the Crawford woman claimed she was hit first and was only acting in self defense.

Video surveillance footage showed the Athens woman walking over to the nail salon and the Crawford woman paying the cashier and riding an electrical store scooter over to the Athens woman. The two began to fight, and moments later the grandmother punched the cashier in the face while the cashier was trying to break up the fight, deputies noted.

Jacqueline Denise Kelley, 45, of Athens, was arrested on one count of battery, and the other two women -- Keitra Suzann Taylor, 25, of Athens and Tiffany LaShawn Stevens, 30, of Crawford -- were each charged with affray.  All are misdemeanor offenses. Kelley was released on a $5,000 bond and Taylor and Stevens posted $500 bonds, according to jail records.