County Corrections Officer Who Went On Vandalism Rampage Has Cases Bound To Grand Jury; Resigns From Sheriff's Office

  • Thursday, January 16, 2020
  • Joseph Dycus

The Hamilton County Sherriff’s Office corrections officer who broke into at least a dozen cars waived his right to a preliminary hearing and bound all of his cases over to the Grand Jury. Samuel Bruns, 23, is facing 10 counts of burglary, 10 counts of vandalism, one count of disorderly conduct, and one count of public intoxication.

Prosecutor Ben Boyer noted that most of the witnesses in the case were present in the packed courtroom. A few minutes after Brun’s appearance in court, he resigned from the Sheriff’s Department.

“He resigned from his job today,” said defense attorney Lee Davis. “We tendered a letter of resignation to Sheriff Jim Hammond today.”

After the appearance, attorney Davis gave a quick recap of what incited Brun’s destructive actions.

“Mr. Bruns had lived there and had lost his key, and it was a mental health episode where he broke into a dozen cars or so and didn’t take anything, but did major damage,” said attorney Davis on what happened during the incident. “So the most important thing is that restitution is made, so we’re in the process of making sure all of the victims have their damage repaired.

When asked if there was a chance for the case to go to trial, attorney Davis had a clear answer.

“No, there’s no dispute as to the facts of what happened,” said attorney Davis. “We want to make sure people whose property was damaged get reimbursed. There’s obviously no excuse for them to go through (a trial).”

According to police reports, Bruns appeared intoxicated and had blood all over his hands and arms when police arrived and saw that multiple cars had been broken into.

“I don’t know if there’s a history, but clearly there is something when somebody breaks into his own car, and then breaks into a dozen other cars looking for a key,” said attorney Davis, “There is something more than vandalism involved, so we’re trying to get to the root of it and trying to handle it not only in the criminal justice system,  but also as a mental health issue.”

The former corrections officer will stay in jail until a later date, with his attorney saying, “He’s going to stay in custody until we can make some accommodations for him to get mental health treatment, and then we’ll sort the case out when it gets upstairs to Criminal Court.”

 

Latest Headlines
Breaking News
Latest Hamilton County Arrest Report
  • 3/29/2024

Here is the latest Hamilton County arrest report: ASBERY, DAVID BENJAMIN 1920 GUNBARREL APT 404 CHATTANOOGA, 37421 Age at Arrest: 48 years old Arresting Agency: Chattanooga PD VANDALISM/MALICIOUS ... more

New Hope Fire Department Disputes TWRA Report On Kayaker Rescues
  • 3/28/2024

New Hope Fire Department Corey Comstock disputed a report by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency about the rescue of 33 kayakers from extremely high winds near Nickajack Cave on Monday. ... more

Woman Dies After Being Seriously Injured In House Fire Thursday Afternoon
Woman Dies After Being Seriously Injured In House Fire Thursday Afternoon
  • 3/28/2024

A woman died after sustaining life-threatening injuries in a house fire on North Moore Road Thursday afternoon and was rescued by Chattanooga firefighters. Hamilton County 911 received a call ... more