Charles Chris McCulley

DALTON, Ga. — A Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office deputy was “fearful” for his safety and that of a fellow deputy as a drunken man “was starting to drop the barrel” of a rifle toward them on Wednesday, according to an incident report. One of the deputies was able to get the man to put the rifle down before “deadly force” was needed.

Charles Chris McCulley, 67, of 384 Alex Drive, was charged with two counts of aggravated assault and public drunkenness.

The deputies were sent to an address on Alex Drive around 9:30 Wednesday evening. When Deputy Darrell Hackney and Deputy Ray Figg arrived in the area, they couldn’t find the address that had anonymously been called in. While they searched, they heard “what sounded like someone talking loudly at the bottom of the hill.”

As the deputies approached, Hackney stopped and began backing up, yelling at a man, later identified as McCulley, “Sheriff’s office, drop the gun!” and demanding that the man come out to speak with the deputies. Figg drew his weapon, “covering down on Mr. McCulley.”

The report said McCulley was “very loud and boisterous,” and his speech was “very thick and slurred.” At first he would not come out, but eventually put down the rifle, a Storm XT, but picked it up as Figg approached him. He held the rifle in front of himself, with the barrel at a 45-degree angle up, but then started pointing the rifle at the deputies again.

“Deputy Figg at this time became fearful for his safety and Deputy Hackney’s safety as McCulley was starting to drop the barrel down toward deputies,” the report said. “Deputy Figg was able to get McCulley to put the rifle down before further action, deadly force, needed to be taken for officer safety.”

The deputies were able to take McCulley into custody. At the jail he registered a .140, “barely blowing into the Alco-Sensor.”

McCulley is being held at the county jail awaiting a bond hearing in Superior Court.