Man charged with three felonies after traffic stop for unsecured child

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Chase Rodney Williams, 22, was arrested yesterday and charged with child neglect, possession of marijuana with intent to sell, tampering with evidence, and resisting arrest without violence.

A Gainesville Police Department officer reported that she pulled Williams over at about 5:10 p.m. because she saw a young child standing on the front passenger side floorboard, with his hands on the dashboard. She pulled to the side and let the car pass her to confirm that the child was unsecured.

The officer reported that Williams immediately began to question the reason for the stop and that she smelled fresh marijuana when she approached the car. When she asked for Williams’ driver’s license, he reportedly gave her a valid medical marijuana card. When she asked him if there was any marijuana in the car, he reportedly said yes and then immediately said no.

The officer reported that Williams refused to step out of the vehicle when asked, then he grabbed a handful of pre-bagged marijuana and threw it all over the yard where they had stopped. As the officer grabbed Williams to detain him, he allegedly began running behind a house and jumped two fences before officers caught him and detained him. The child was allegedly left unattended in the vehicle when he ran.

A search of the vehicle reportedly produced one baggie of marijuana under the seat in addition to the nine baggies thrown into the yard. The total amount was over 40 grams, and the packaging was consistent with narcotics sales.

After being detained, Williams reportedly stated spontaneously that the house where they stopped was his father’s house, but it was later determined that he did not know the resident. He also reportedly said he was driving home after visiting his father, but officers determined that he was heading away from his own residence.

Post Miranda, Williams reportedly admitted ownership of the marijuana and said he purchased it legally in a dispensary and divided it into bags because “he smokes a lot and wanted to limit his daily intake.” He reportedly said he did not use a scale to weigh the marijuana and just “grabbed a random amount,” but nine of the baggies had consistent weights.

Williams successfully completed probation in June for possession of a controlled substance; a charge of possession of marijuana with intent to sell was dropped in the same case. In April 2021, he was arrested for marijuana possession with intent to sell, illegal possession of a firearm that had been reported stolen, assault on an officer, and property damage; the charges were later dropped. While on probation, in October 2021, he was arrested for selling marijuana within 1,000 feet of a church; the charges were later dropped. He was also arrested for domestic abuse while on probation, but those charges were also dropped.

Bail information is not made public in child neglect cases.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.