CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – It’s been three months since George Henderson – an Army veteran with Alzheimer’s disease – was taken to the ground by a Guthrie, Kentucky, police officer and arrested for suspicion of drugs. His wife Kimberly said there’s a silver lining. “They call out his name in court, and he doesn’t even know why he’s there. He doesn’t remember. It’s the only good thing that’s come out of this.”
Despite George’s declining condition, including three seizures since the incident, they have one new reason this week to be relieved: All the criminal charges have been dropped.
On Dec. 6, 2024, at around 2 p.m., Master Sgt. (retired) George Henderson, 61, disappeared from his Clarksville home. Clarksville Police and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation launched a Silver Alert two hours later, around 4 p.m., and as police and family scrambled to find George, the sun set and the temperatures dropped below 25 degrees.
At about 10:16 p.m., only 10 miles away and just over the Kentucky state line in Guthrie, a confused George wandered into an Exxon gas station. According to previous reports, the gas station clerk saw Henderson getting in the clerk’s car, and the clerk had to “forcibly remove him” and then hit a panic button to alert law enforcement. Officer J. Pritchett with Guthrie Police Department arrived and approached Henderson inside the gas station.
In the body camera footage, after a few questions, Pritchett tries to arrest Henderson, who resists. The two wrestle, and the officer takes Henderson to the ground. Apparently, Henderson bites Pritchett’s hand. Officer Pritchett frees his arm, holds Henderson’s head against the floor and punches him on the right side of his head. The blow renders Henderson unconscious for about 30 seconds as Pritchett continues the arrest.
| PREVIOUSLY: Veteran with Alzheimer’s, subject of TBI Silver Alert, arrested, punched unconscious by Guthrie police | VIDEO
Taken to jail, not hospital
According to George’s attorney, Jeremy Stochaj, a copy of the EMS report from Dec. 6 revealed that the EMS technician told Officer Pritchett that George needed to be taken to the emergency room for further evaluation, and Pritchett indicated that he was going to do that.
“But he did not. He instead took George to the Todd County Detention Center and proceeded to charge George with being intoxicated and possession of drugs,” Stochaj said. “The only place that could have determined whether George was on drugs would have been the emergency room.”
About 12 hours later, when Kimberly arrived at the jail to bring George his medicine and take him home, she was shocked at the state he was in. “He had on some torn-up boxers, no shirt on, and a dirty blanket,” Kimberly said. “When I hugged him, that’s when I saw the blood.” Instead of going home, she took George to the hospital herself, and doctors stitched a wound closed behind George’s ear that had been covered with a Band-Aid.
Clarksville Now has reached out to Guthrie Police and to Todd County Attorney Jeffrey Traughber for comment. Guthrie Police Chief Dean Blumel previously told Clarksville Now that Officer Prichett’s actions were consistent with his training and department policy.
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George’s condition declines
On Jan. 15, George Henderson was rushed to Tennova Healthcare-Clarksville for a severe seizure. Upon arriving, he was immediately transferred to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. Since then, George has had two more seizures, something that hasn’t happened before.
“One of his home nurses said that (seizures) happen sometimes when you get hit on the head,” Kimberly said. “There’s pressure, and until all the pressure is released, you’ll usually have seizures.”
Testing is still ongoing to determine the cause of the seizures, Kimberly said.
Charges dropped, potential civil suit
On March 12, the Todd County Grand Jury returned a “no true bill” for George’s case, meaning he was not indicted on any charges. Friday morning, the Todd County Circuit Court Clerk’s Office confirmed to Clarksville Now that as a result, he is no longer facing criminal charges.
While that’s a relief for Kimberly and her family, they are devastated that his legacy is now tied to the incident at the gas station.
“That’s how people remember him, even though he doesn’t remember it,” Kimberly said. “Since then, people have come up to us when we’re out in public, and they want to shake his hand and hug him and tell him he’s an inspiration. But when they walk away, he just looks at me and says, ‘Why do they want to hug me?'” Kimberly recalled. “He doesn’t know about the video. He doesn’t remember. He doesn’t know why people think he’s an inspiration. So, we make excuses for him and tell him it’s because he was in the military.”
According to Stochaj, a civil lawsuit may still be pending.
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