When Clayton County sheriff’s deputies responded to a domestic dispute earlier this month, they instead found a 9-foot-tall marijuana plant and another 4-foot-tall plant.
The incident began Sept. 7 on Mockingbird Trail when Diane Hazelrigs told authorities her 30-year-old son, Douglas Hazelrigs, left her house threatening to shoot her when he returned, according to the sheriff’s office. He was yelling and using profane language, the woman said.
She then pointed out two houses on the neighboring street of Hummingbird Way where her son is known to hang out with brothers Michael McGuoirk and William McGuoirk, authorities said.
When deputies checked the location, they found the 4-foot plant growing in the back yard “in plain view,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.
Michael McGuoirk, who was on the scene, was taken into custody.
“Deputies were told that Michael’s brother William had given him seeds so that he could grow a plant of his own and that they would find a much larger plant where William lived on the same street,” the sheriff’s office said.
When deputies checked that location, they found the taller marijuana plant, also “in plain view in the back yard of that address,” according to deputies.
The homeowner told deputies William McGuoirk was growing the plant but he was not home.
In the meantime, deputies checked the property and found Douglas Hazelrigs hiding in a shed in the rear, authorities said. He was taken into custody.
After a warrant was issued for William McGuoirk, he was arrested the next day at a medical appointment, authorities said.
Know what’s really going on with crime and public safety in your metro Atlanta community, including breaking news, trial coverage, trends and the latest on unsolved cases. Sign up for the AJC’s crime and safety newsletter delivered weekly to your inbox.
In other news:
About the Author
