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Portal man injured in four-wheeler accident
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    A Portal man lost part of his leg and underwent hip replacement surgery Sunday after a four-wheeler accident in Metter Saturday afternoon.
    Christopher Michael O'Toole, 18, R.V. Shelby Lane,  Portal, remains in serious but stable condition, Metter Police Sr. Patrol Officer Ryan Oliver said  Monday. O'Toole was a passenger on the four-wheeler.
    Oliver said James Robert Martin, 18, Pulaski Highway, is charged with underage possession of alcohol, failure to yield, driving with a suspended license, second offense DUI under 21, and obstruction. He originally told police O'Toole had been driving the four-wheeler.
    Martin was driving north on Portal-Metter Highway just inside the Metter city limits around 4 p.m. Saturday, on the east side of the road, in a ditch, Oliver said.
    He cut across the highway on a hill near Elmer Street, heading west, pulling directly into the path of a tan Buick Century driven by Portal resident Brock Chavers, 25, he said.
    "Chavers never had a chance to slow down" before striking the four-wheeler, as he was upon it as soon as he topped the hill. Chavers is not charged in the accident.
    Martin was not seriously injured, but O'Toole suffered trauma to his leg and hip area, and part of his leg had to be amputated, Oliver said. He was taken by EMS to the Candler County Airport, then he was airlifted by Life Star helicopter to Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah, he said.
    Family members told Oliver Sunday O'Toole was undergoing hip replacement surgery as well.
    Martin was taken to  the Candler County Jail where he later posted bond, according to jail records.
  
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Standoff in Flemington ends with man's death
GBI identifies man wanted on felony warrant who barricaded himself inside residence
Flemington Standoff
Law enforcement cordoned off a Flemington neighborhood Friday afternoon as a standoff with a man wanted on Maryland warrant for aggravated assault ensued. - photo by PATRICK DONAHUE

FLEMINGTON – The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is looking into the death of a man Friday following a standoff with law enforcement.

Daquan Phillips, 26, of Baltimore, was wanted on an aggravated assault warrant out of Maryland. At about 1:50 p.m. Friday, the U.S. Marshals Service, along with Liberty County Sheriff’s Office deputies, went to a Tranquil South home to carry out the warrant.

According to the GBI, one person was removed from the home without incident. Phillips, who was outside when law enforcement officers arrived, went into the home and barricaded himself.

Liberty County Sheriff’s Maj. Bill Kirkendall said Phillips did not respond to repeated attempts to establish communication.

Flash bang grenades were heard deployed around 6:15 p.m. and shots were fired shortly thereafter.

“We waited as long as we could,” Kirkendall said.

Kirkendall said law enforcement’s goal was to bring the situation to a peaceful conclusion.

“When that failed, they had to take immediate action to protect citizens in the area,” he said.

After hours of attempting to communicate with Phillips, entry was made into the home. Phillips was discovered in the home with what appeared to be a gunshot wound, and was later pronounced dead by the Liberty County Coroner’s Office. A 5-year-old child was removed from the home safe and unharmed.

Phillips’ body will be taken to the GBI Crime Lab in Pooler, Georgia where an autopsy will be performed.

Multiple agencies, including the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office, the Hinesville Police Department, Savannah Police Department SWAT, the McIntosh County Sheriff’s Office, and Georgia State Patrol responded to assist.

This case is active and ongoing. Once complete, the case file will be given to the Atlantic Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for Review.

“This is a quickly-evolving situation,” Kirkendall said, “and the investigation is still in its infancy.”

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