Columbus, GA – 25 August 2018 – They were pointing fingers in Recorder’s Court Wednesday when the repo man said a woman blocked him inside a gate on Laurel Drive Tuesday while the woman’s attorney said the tow truck driver committed a crime by unlocking a backyard gate.
Kisha Golden, 39, of Columbus was released on a $2,500 recognizance bond after she pleaded not guilty to false imprisonment of the repo man on property at 2236 Laurel Drive. Judge Julius Hunter agreed to the bond after Golden’s attorney, Robin King, argued the car wasn’t on a street but in an enclosed back yard.
Police officer Damian Nicolas said police were called to the home to check on a dispute between Golden and the repo driver, John Curtis.
Curtis said he saw Golden’s car in the backyard on Monday and returned about 1 p.m. Tuesday. He opened a backyard gate, hooked up the vehicle he was repossessing and then knocked on Golden’s door to get her stuff out of the vehicle.
“Miss Kisha came outside and told me to put her car down,” Curtis told the court. “She told me I was trespassing.”
That’s when Golden closed the gate and pulled another vehicle around in the backyard. She refused to remove the vehicle out of the repo driver’s path and said he was going to jail for trespassing.
Curtis said he was stuck in the driveway for about 30 minutes until police arrived. She eventually gave him the car keys and moved the car out of the driveway. “They took the belongings out of the vehicle and I drove off,” Curtis testified.
Most of the vehicles picked up by the company are on private property, he said. The company doesn’t have to make contact with the owner but he does as a professional.
King argued that Curtis chose not to knock on the door until he got the woman’s vehicle. He admitted the fence was about 4 -foot tall. “I couldn’t leave my vehicle,” he said.
Matt Brown, the assistant district attorney, said Curtis wasn’t on the property for an illegal purpose.
King disagreed. “We believe he committed an offense to open the gate and hook up the vehicle,” she said. “If it had been on the street, it would have been a different matter. “
Hunter said a person didn’t have the right to imprison the repo driver.
Source: Ledger-Enquirer
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