Man's day goes from bad to worse after he drives car over curb

FORT WALTON BEACH – A man who crashed a car at a convenience store ended up being arrested on multiple charges after he tangled with lawmen.

The saga began April 28 at the Dodges Store at the corner of Eglin Parkway and Hollywood Boulevard. An employee called Fort Walton Beach Police to report a man had driven into the parking lot and over a curb, and that he was possibly drunk.

When officers arrived they found the car, a white Mercury, disabled in the parking lot and leaking coolant. They went inside, retrieved the driver, and escorted him outside. He was identified as 23-year-old Joseph Maurice Cruz of Niceville.

When officers told him he was seen driving the car, he became angry and started yelling cusswords at them, the arresting officer wrote in his report. Cruz refused to calm down and continued to yell and point his finger at the officer.

The officer spun him around and pushed him onto the hood of the car. Cruz allegedly resisted and had to be taken to the ground by both officers. After they put him in a cruiser, Cruz is said to have kicked the car windows. His reward was a Tasing.

Then they called the car owner, who came to the scene. She said Cruz took the car without her permission. Thus, he was charged with grand theft auto.

He’d also eaten a bag of chips in the store without paying for them, resulting in a retail theft charge. The chips were valued at $3.49.

If all that weren’t enough, officers found a bag containing marijuana residue and a pipe in Cruz’s pocket. He was charged with possession of paraphernalia.

They added a resisting arrest without violence charge.

Cruz’s court date is June 11.