UPDATE: According to DCSO deputy Kenith Riley, the subject, David C. Whitaker, Jr., was in front of Judge Joe Castlen today in Div. II Circuit Court, for possession of a controlled substance – methamphetamine.
According to Deputy Riley, Whitaker repeatedly asked the judge to see his family, walked back and forth across the courtroom, and even asked to tell his kids in the hallway goodbye. Deputy Riley stated there was no one in the hallway.
Whitaker then offered the deputy his phone and repeatedly got up and down saying he was sick. Whitaker stood up, Deputy Riley grabbed his arm and Whitaker ran out of the courtroom with the deputy in pursuit.
The subject reached the stairwell, put his hands in his pockets and made a threatening move toward the deputy. Deputy Riley deployed his taser into Whitaker’s coat before the subject jumped down several flights of stairs with Deputy Riley following behind down to the first floor and out the door of the building.
Deputy Riley was on the radio at the beginning of the incident but reception was limited.
An arrest warrant has now been issued for Whitaker for failure to appear, escape and resisting arrest.
According to the Daviess County Sheriff’s Office, David Whitaker appeared in court today at the Daviess County Judicial Center. Whitaker, who is not a current Daviess County Detention Center inmate, was in the process of being remanded to jail.
“He was going into custody and he bolted out of the courtroom,” said DCSO Major Barry Smith. “As he left the courtroom the deputy shot the taser at him…It is possible one lead may have struck him.”
According to police scanner reports, officers were searching for a white male wearing a gray jacket and red sweatpants with taser probes in his back.
Major Smith stated that the subject is still at large, adding, “If we don’t get him today, we will be putting out a warrant.”
