Man charged after allegedly running driver off North Georgia highway

Zantravious Shields

Credit: Barrow County Sheriff's Office

Credit: Barrow County Sheriff's Office

Zantravious Shields

A man is facing multiple felony charges after authorities said he ran another driver off a North Georgia highway without stopping.

Zantravious Shields, 22, of Winder, surrendered to Barrow County deputies about 3:30 p.m. Monday, nearly 36 hours after the crash sent Micah Callahan to a hospital with serious injuries, according to the sheriff’s office.

Callahan and his family told Channel 2 Action News he was driving early Sunday morning on Ga. 316 when another vehicle approached him from behind.

RELATED: Man critically injured after allegedly being run off North Georgia highway

“I saw headlights in my rear-view mirror,” he said while still in the intensive care unit at Athens Regional Medical Center. “I thought they were going to pass me because I was in the slow lane.”

The Barrow sheriff’s office said a red Ford Escape driven by Shields hit Callahan’s black Jeep Cherokee and caused it to leave the roadway and hit a tree.

Callahan barely remembers spinning out and flipping a few times before he blacked out, he told Channel 2. He woke up with several broken bones as another driver spotted the wreckage about 4:30 a.m. It’s unclear how long he may have been unconscious after the crash.

“The next thing I remember is waking up on the ground calling and crying for help,” Callahan said.

Callahan has several surgeries scheduled for Tuesday, his mother told Channel 2.

“He is going to be having surgery ... to repair his right lower leg and ankle and his right ring finger,” Shannon Lackey said.

Shields had an attorney present when he went to the sheriff’s office to turn himself in for questioning, Channel 2 reported.

He was booked on charges of felony hit-and-run, felony serious injury by vehicle, failure to report a crash with damage/injuries, following too closely and improper lane change, officials said.

Shields was a former high school football standout at Prince Avenue Christian School and North Oconee High School, who later went on to sign with Reinhardt University in 2015. At Prince Avenue Christian, he was a first-team all-state pick at defensive back by the Georgia Sports Writers Association.

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