A Gainesville man was arrested Tuesday and is now facing charges related to a February crash that seriously injured a woman in northwest Hall County.
Hall County Sheriff's Office Public Information Officer B.J. Williams said the crash in question happened on Southers Road at Greencrest Road on the night of February 21. She said deputies found a Chevrolet Corvette on fire after it had apparently crashed into a tree.
The car's driver had reportedly already fled the scene, but a 26-year-old female passenger was still inside the car.
"She suffered, not only being knocked unconscious during the course of the accident, but she suffered a fractured vertebra in her neck and also a broken pelvis, so she was very critically hurt," Williams said.
Sheriff's office investigators identified the suspected driver as Brandan Lee Stevens, age 36 of Gainesville, but were not able to locate him.
On Tuesday of this week, however, Williams said a deputy spotted Stevens while on patrol.
"One of our deputies was patrolling the area right around Mabry Road and Old Flowery Branch Road and Mountain View Road," Williams said. "He noticed a driver of a vehicle resembled 36-year-old Brandan Lee Stevens...When the vehicle that Stevens was driving pulled into the parking lot of a convenience store on Mountain View Road, the deputy stopped as well and asked to speak with Mr. Stevens."
Williams said Stevens initially identified himself as one of his brothers, but the deputy ultimately identified him as Brandon Lee Stevens and arrested him for giving false information to an officer.
Stevens is now facing additional charges stemming from the February crash, including Serious Injury by Vehicle, Failure to Stop at the Scene of an Accident, Reckless Driving and Open Container Violation. He remained in the Hall County Jail without bond as of Wednesday afternoon.
"This was really a case of one of our deputies being in the right place at the right time," Williams said.
