By Jon Johnson
SAFFORD – Officers seized roughly 2.5 grams of meth and booked one man into jail on an assault charge after a domestic dispute ended with a woman being taken to the hospital.
Officers responded to an alley in the 600 block of W. 1st Street at about 9 p.m. on Sunday regarding a woman screaming for help.
Upon arrival, officers located Susan Renee Manley, 49, of Phoenix, standing next to a vehicle. There were also two men at the scene as well.
When one of the officers approached, he witnessed Manley throw something with her left hand toward a fence that was behind her. The officer later located a plastic baggie containing 1.5 grams of methamphetamine where Manley had thrown the object.
After throwing what she had in her left hand, Manley then grabbed her right wrist, which was apparently broken/dislocated.
According to a Safford Police report, Manley said she was arguing with one of the males who was with her, William Charles Coleman, 33, of Tucson, about going back to Tucson and that Coleman began putting her clothes in the back of his truck. Manley said she attempted to stop him and Coleman pushed her backward with both hands, causing her to fall. As she fell, she attempted to catch herself and broke her right wrist.
Coleman said Manley was walking backwards and fell by herself. He declined to comment further and was arrested and booked into the Graham County Jail for aggravated assault.
After initially denying throwing the bag of meth, Manley allegedly admitted to doing so and said she received the drug from the second man standing there. The second man said he didn’t have anything to do with Manley or Coleman and just came to help because he heard a woman screaming.
Manley was then transported to the Mt. Graham Regional Medical Center for treatment. An officer brought her purse to the hospital at Manley’s request and, after receiving permission to search it, found a second baggie containing slightly less than a gram of meth. Manley denied knowing the meth was in her purse and said she had cleaned it out that same morning.
Charges of possession of a dangerous drug and possession of drug paraphernalia against Manley are pending a review by the Graham County Attorney’s Office.
