Father and Son Charged with Aggravated Assault

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department has charged a father and son with aggravated assault after a disturbance last week.
Sheriff Patrick Ray said 24 year old Clinton Lane Cope of Midway Road and his father 52 year old Timothy Lane Cope of Smith Road will be in court October 10.
Both Clinton and Timothy Cope are charged with aggravated assault. Timothy Cope is also charged with disorderly conduct. Bond for Clinton Cope is $2,500. Timothy Cope’s bond is $4,000.
According to Sheriff Ray, a deputy was called to the home of Clinton Cope on Wednesday, October 2 in answer to a disturbance call. Upon arrival, the officer spoke with two other persons in the home who said that both Timothy and Clinton Cope had awaken them from sleep. Timothy Cope was said to be swinging a ball bat at one of the persons in the home while Clinton Cope was swinging his fist at him (same victim).
After hearing from the two persons in the home and observing the behavior of both Timothy and Clinton Cope, the officer placed both father and son under arrest.
Timothy Cope was further charged with disorderly conduct after failing to heed the officer’s orders to go outside the residence and wait. Sheriff Ray said Cope initially did go outside but he came back in the home and began yelling. The officer sent Cope outside a second time, but he came back in yet again.
47 year old Jeffery Allan Matthews of Sparta Highway is charged with being a fugitive from justice. He is being held without bond and his court date is October 10. Sheriff Ray said Matthews was recently checked locally to determine if he had a valid drivers’ license. A computer check revealed that Matthews had an active arrest warrant against him in Martinsville (Morgan County) Indiana for failure to appear . Officials of the Morgan County, Indiana Sheriff’s Department have said they plan to seek extradition of Matthews back there.
47 year old Mark Owen Alvis of Sparta Highway is charged with a second offense of driving under the influence. His bond is $2,500 and he will be in court October 10. Sheriff Ray said that on or about Thursday, October 3 a deputy responded to a call of someone driving through the complainant’s yard. Upon arrival, the officer made contact with Alvis who had a strong odor of alcohol on his person and he was unsteady on his feet. According to Sheriff Ray, Alvis admitted to drinking and taking five hydros. He also allegedly admitted to driving through the complainant’s yard and going across Brent Taylor Road. Alvis submitted to but performed poorly on all field sobriety tasks. He was placed under arrest and transported to the jail for booking.
28 year old Frank Andy Checchi of Hooper Street, Smithville is charged with driving on a suspended license. His bond is $1,500 and he will be in court on October 10. Sheriff Ray said that on Monday, October 7, Checchi was operating a motor vehicle on Highway 70 when he was stopped by an officer who had prior knowledge of Checchi having a suspended drivers license. A computer check confirmed his license were suspended for failing to satisfy a citation in DeKalb County.