Boy cyclist attacked by man and daughter in pickup truck in DeKalb
A 45-year-old man is facing a simple battery charge in DeKalb County after he was accused of shoving a boy on a bicycle who asked him to put away his cellphone, according to a media report Friday.
Brody Hartley, 13, told Channel 2 Action News that he was nearly sideswiped by a man in a pickup truck near the intersection of Lilburn Stone Mountain Road and Hugh Howell Road. He rode up to the man when the truck stopped at an intersection, and saw him texting on his phone.
"I just tapped him and said, ‘You almost hit me back there. Could you put the phone away?'" Brody told the TV station. "And he told me, ‘Pull over.' He was going to talk to me," Brody told the TV station.
They pulled over at a gas station, where Brody later told police that the man shoved him and kicked his bike with the help of his daughter who'd been riding with him. The man told him he shouldn't be riding on the road.
A police report obtained by Channel 2 Action News said that both William Tinnell, 45, and Brittney Tinnell, 18, admitted to shoving Brody Hartley. Both are free on bond.
Brody told the TV station that the shoves popped his shoulder out of place.
About the Author
Ty Tagami is a staff writer for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Since joining the newspaper in 2002, he has written about everything from hurricanes to homelessness. He has deep experience covering local government and education, and can often be found under the Gold Dome when lawmakers meet or in a school somewhere in the state.
