Don't play hit and run with the sheriffs right hand

If you want to be involved in a hit and run incident, it might be a good idea to hit a car that is not driven by the sheriff's administrative assistant and office manager. Jo Ann Sargent does not tote a gun, badge or jailhouse key, but instead is normally armed with a computer and adding machine as she works on paying bills and other administrative duties at the Jasper County Sheriff's Department. However, that all changed on Friday morning, when Sargent was sitting in her car at a traffic light outside the Walmart Store on West Gibson Street and she became a seasoned patrol officer ready to seek and capture the suspect of an alleged crime. Sargent said that as she was waiting for the light to turn to green, another vehicle came to a sliding stop and then moved forward again hitting her car. Sargent, who has been with the Sheriff's Department for many years, said she was waiting for the red light to turn green when she felt a thud and realized someone had hit her car. She said she looked around to see what was going on and soon realized the driver was leaving the scene. As Sargent fell into pursuit, she called emergency dispatchers to tell them what was going on and at the same time followed the vehicle east on Gibson Street and then south to Farm to Market Road 252 and eventually to County Road 339, where she blocked the runaway driver in until officers could get there. The name of the driver or other details have not been released, pending formal charges and arraignment.