A man convicted of murder roughly 30 years ago was on the run for three days after walking away from a transitional facility in northeast Atlanta.
Charles Edward Smith, 51, who has been on parole since 2021, left the Atlanta Transitional Center on Ponce de Leon Avenue on Wednesday, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections. He was apprehended Saturday night by Gwinnett County police.
According to police, Smith was spotted in the area of Grayson Parkway and Crane Drive in unincorporated Lawrenceville. When officers arrived, they found him outside of a house, and he immediately ran toward the road, police said in a statement.
A police K-9 was deployed, and Smith was found behind a home with his arms around the dog, according to the statement. Officers ordered him to release the K-9, and another officer used a stun gun to get him on the ground. He was eventually handcuffed after a fight, police said.
Smith faces charges of escape and parole violation, as well as felony obstruction. He was taken into custody and treated at a hospital for injuries sustained during the struggle with the police dog.
It was not clear how Smith was able to leave the minimum-security facility, which houses up to 257 men while on work details for various state agencies.
Smith committed the crimes of murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime in Clayton County in November 1992, according to online records. He was incarcerated in 1994 and arrived at the Atlanta Transitional Center last month, officials said. He also had stints in prison from 1989-90 and 1991-92.
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