Gwinnett Daily Post

LAWRENCEVILLE - A robbery suspect shot in the arm by police last week faces more charges after he attempted a harrowing escape from Gwinnett Medical Center on Tuesday, officials said.

Kenneth Williams, 22, of Norcross, didn't get far after he allegedly shoved a guard and bolted through the Lawrenceville hospital early Tuesday morning.

Shortly after he fled his room, Williams was arrested on the hospital grounds by Lawrenceville police and hospital security, an official said. He faces additional charges of escape and obstruction of a law enforcement officer.

The guard, a Sheriff's Department deputy, was assisting Williams with a medical device when the suspect sat up in bed and shoved the deputy in the chest, said Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Stacey Bourbonnais.

The incident marked Williams' second run-in with police in the last week.

On Sept. 15, a Gwinnett police officer shot Williams in the arm after he moved aggressively toward a .40 caliber handgun in his possession, police said. Williams had allegedly used that weapon to pistol-whip a Norcross man in his Jimmy Carter Boulevard apartment. Police said Williams demanded drugs and money from the victim but left with nothing, which is when he encountered police.

In that incident, police have charged Williams with two counts of armed robbery and three counts of aggravated assault.

Williams' alleged accomplice, Marshall Richards, 23, was arrested on scene. He remains at the Gwinnett County Jail without bond.

The officer who shot Williams, James Presley, was placed on administrative leave last week while police conducted an internal investigation of the shooting.

Presley, a four-year veteran of the force, has since returned to regular duties, said Gwinnett police spokeswoman Cpl. Illana Spellman.

"The officer's actions were not in violation of any department policy or procedures," Spellman said.