LUTTRELL (WATE) – A Union County man is recovering in the hospital as he faces charges for allegedly leading officers on a pursuit, trying to hit them with is vehicle, and threatening them with a gun.
The Union County Sheriff’s Office says deputies were called to the 900 block of Ridgecrest Road around 11:16 a.m. Sunday for a domestic disturbance. When they arrived, they saw a man, later identified as Johnny Adams, 57, fleeing the scene in a Dodge pickup truck.
Deputies say Adams tried to hit deputies with his vehicle and officer pursued him to Archer Road in Luttrell where they say Adams drove into a field and hit a tree. While still in his vehicle, deputies say Adams pulled out a rifle barrel and yelled, “I have a gun and you will have to kill me.”
Deputies set up a perimeter around the vehicle until backup deputies and officers from the Maynardville Police Department and Grainger County Sheriff’s Office could arrive.
Sheriff Billy Breeding was able to communicate with the man briefly, but he says Adams eventually refused to talk anymore. After exhausting all other options. officers advanced on his vehicle and took Adams into custody. Adams had what appeared to be a number of self-inflicted wounds from a knife or other sharp-bladed object. Officers performed first aid until he could be taken to the hospital.
Adams is currently listed in critical condition. Once he recovers, charges are pending for aggravated assault on a police officer and felony evading arrest.