A frantic homeowner called 911 at 5 am after a frightening incident. She said a man in underwear was beating on her back door. She stayed on the phone with dispatch while officers responded. During that time, the man tried to get in the screen door, then moved an outdoor table in front of a window and tried to climb it. Then he picked up a broom and attempted to break her window.
When officers arrived on the scene, they took Michael Hayes, Jr., who was wearing underwear and a t-shirt, into custody. They said at first, he seemed confused and thought they were somewhere in Tennessee. Deputies booked him into the Lawrence County Jail.
When he was released later in the day, he called the sheriff’s office to say he’d been out on a nighttime stroll to get some peace and quiet because his child was having a sleepover.
He said that a group of men approached him and demanded money at knifepoint. He said the man stole a gold necklace from him but ran off because a car came down the road. He said he then jumped over a fence to call for help in the woman’s yard.
He said he later passed out from fear and exhaustion and woke up when officers placed the cuffs on him. Police noted he did look as if he’d been in a fight. Hayes told officers some men a few streets over mistakenly thought he was looking at a woman’s window and attacked him. They also noted his injuries were consistent with climbing over a fence.
