Woman arrested for deadly hit and run in Bainbridge

BAINBRIDGE, Ga. (WCTV) - The Decatur County Sheriff’s Office says it has arrested a woman in connection to a deadly hit and run in Bainbridge from Thursday, March 3.

The crash happened around 5:30 p.m. that day in the area of Black Jack and Sasser Store roads, according to DCSO. The sheriff’s office initially received a call about a drunk man lying in the road, but immediately after dispatch sent someone to the area, DCSO learned a white van had run the man over.

Decatur-Grady 911 told deputies that the person driving the van was a black woman, and she drove away traveling east on Thomasville Road. The vehicle had a Georgia license plate with the tag number TBU1184.

As deputies were headed to the address of the van’s registration in Climax, Georgia, dispatchers told them it was seen driving recklessly down Antioch Church Road, the arrest affidavit says.

When deputies arrived at the home on Lake Douglas Exit in Climax, they found a woman in a “gown-like” dress standing next to the white van with the same tag number dispatchers told DCSO to look for.

A deputy asked the woman if she was the driver of the van, and she replied “yes sir,” and the deputy promptly told her she was being detained and the vehicle was being seized, the affidavit says.

The deputy noticed the driver-side door and rear sliding door were open, and he saw a beer can on the floor behind the driver’s seat, the court document says. Georgia State Patrol troopers came to the scene to ask questions and investigate further.

The woman, who deputies identified as Shawanda Anderson, refused to be tested for drugs and alcohol after going through a field sobriety test, so DCSO drew up a search warrant for her blood and took her to the Bainbridge Memorial Hospital, the affidavit says.

After testing was done, Anderson was taken to the Decatur County Jail. She faces charges of homicide by vehicle, driving on the wrong side of the road, driving under the influence, improper passing and leaving the scene of an accident.