Man who says he tried to commit suicide by toilet appears in court

wireready_03-02-2020-10-20-03_00036_davidscottalbrecht02192020

Photo: David Scott Albrecht

A Gassville man who recently said he was trying to kill himself by sticking his head in a toilet in the Baxter County jail appeared in Baxter County Circuit Court Thursday.

During the day 37-year-old David Scott Albrecht was booked into the jail, he was reported to have become increasingly unruly. He was said to have been screaming, shouting obscenities, banging on his cell and refusing to follow commands from jail staff.

He was placed in a restraint chair several times during the day in an attempt to control his actions.

At one period, a member of the jail staff went to the detox cell where Albrecht was housed and found him on his hands and knees with his head in the toilet.

The jailer asked Albrecht what he was doing, and the inmate was reported to have replied, “I am trying to drown myself, what’s it to you?”

Two jailers attempted to get Albrecht back into a restraint chair, but he became combative and struck one of them in the chest knocking the wind out of the officer. He was finally put back in the chair.

The Gassville man’s incarceration stems from an incident Feb. 15 in which he is accused of taking a vehicle without permission and stealing personal property from a residence where he was a guest. He is also charged in connection with his actions after being put in jail.

On Thursday, Albrecht was denied his request for a reduction in his almost $21,000 bond by Circuit Judge John Putman. He was ordered to appear in circuit court March 12.

The incident which put him behind bars began when a Baxter County deputy responded to an address along State Highway 5 North in Midway where the residents of the home said Albrecht and his girlfriend had been allowed to spend the night in their home.

The female victim said when she awoke on the morning of Feb. 15, she discovered that, sometime during the night, Albrecht had allegedly taken the keys to her vehicle off the kitchen table and drove away in the car without permission.

In addition, the victims said there were items missing from the home, including $80 in cash, several DVD movies, clothing and jewelry.

Albrecht’s girlfriend said about daylight, he had told her he was going to a convenience store in the Midway area. She said she had no idea he was taking the victim’s car. She said she thought he meant he was walking to the store.

After taking the report, the deputy left the residence. As he approached the convenience store in the area, he saw a vehicle matching the description of the one reported to have been stolen.

The driver went around the building “as if to evade” the deputy, then got on Highway 5 North and returned to the residence where the vehicle had allegedly been taken.

Albrecht was identified as the driver. He admitted to the male resident he had taken $80 off the kitchen table and returned it.

The female victim looked in the car and found items missing from the home. Some items believed missing were not found. Albrecht was reported to have offered little information as to the property.

When booked into the Baxter County Detention Center, Albrecht was reported to have had a gold coin necklace and a gold bracelet in his possession. The victims identified the items as belonging to them.

Albrecht is charged with theft of property, and second-degree battery on a law enforcement or corrections officer

He remains an inmate in the county jail.

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