Good Policing? Cars Rammed, Shots Fired in Adairsville Drug Bust

Adairsville Police Chief Robert Jones says several of his officers were assaulted Tuesday while trying to arrest two alleged drug dealers.

Adairsville Police Department officers were tipped off to "an illicit drug transaction (that) was about to occur" in the parking lot of Hardee’s on Princeton Boulevard, Jones said in a release posted on the department's Facebook page.

"Several marked police units approached the scene in (an) attempt to apprehend the suspects," the release says. "One of the suspects used his vehicle offensively against an officer by ramming the front end of a patrol car." 

Police identified him as Cajo Marque Harris, 36, of Lithonia.

"The suspect then struck two parked, unattended vehicles," the release continues. "The suspect attempted to run down an officer who was standing in the parking lot. Acting out of fear for his life, the officer fired approximately three rounds into the suspect’s vehicle. The officer fired several more rounds into the suspect’s vehicle as it tried to ram another police car. 

"The suspect lost control of vehicle and drove into a nearby ditch. Adairsville officers then took the driver into custody and discovered a large quantity of marijuana." 

Police recovered several pounds of marijuana, according to a second post on the department's Facebook page.

"It wasn't a small amount of marijuana, it was a sizable amount and is the sort of quantity that would've been used to distribute to our children at some point," commented APD's Mike Fitz, who is listed as the officer who arrested Harris, according to Bartow County Sheriff's Office jail records.

Harris was arrested and charged with three counts of aggravated assault on a peace officer, possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute, unlawful use of a communications device and numerous traffic-related offenses.

Varriel James Adams Jr., 40, of Atlanta, also was arrested and charged with conspiracy to possess marijuana with the intent to distribute and unlawful use of a communication device. 

Neither the officers nor suspects suffered injuries.

Harris and Adams are being held at the Bartow County jail.

APD officers received a number of "good job" comments from fans of the department's Facebook page, where they shared a photo of a damaged police car and the alleged marijuana, and the bust made Atlanta news.

Now Patch wants to know:

Did APD do a good job or put the public at risk with the arrests of the alleged drug dealers in a restaurant parking lot, which included gunfire and resulted in several damaged cars?