Driver accused of intentionally hitting man in wheelchair, laughing


When she saw a man in a wheelchair behind her car, a Cobb County woman told him he needed to move. She was ready to leave the Checkers parking lot, according to witnesses.

“Move or I’m going to run you over,” Gloria Ledbetter allegedly said, according to an arrest warrant.

And she did, Smyrna police said.

As Herman Atkins was trying to get out of the way, Ledbetter backed her Pontiac Grand Prix into the man, knocking him to the ground Saturday afternoon, according to the warrant.

“Said accused then pulled forward, stopped and again leaned out of the window and began laughing at said victim before fleeing the area,” the warrant states.

Atkins was not seriously injured, according to police. Ledbetter was later arrested and charged with aggravated assault and hit-and-run, booking records showed.

Ledbetter, of Smyrna, was being held Thursday without bond at the Cobb jail.