Robbery suspect in court after traffic stop; passenger faces kidnapping charges
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DOWNTOWN JACKSON — A man arrested in Jackson this week after being wanted by U.S. Marshals was in court Thursday along with a woman in the vehicle with him when he was caught. Police attempted to stop a car for a seat belt violation Tuesday near Paul Coffman Drive and East Chester Street when the driver initially would not pull over, according to an affidavit. When the driver finally stopped, she told police the backseat passenger, Joseph Woodruff, and front-seat passenger, Haley Layne Smith, told her not to stop for the police. Woodruff was wanted on an aggravated robbery charge stemming from a May 15 incident in which he is accused of robbing a man at gunpoint of about $15 in cash and an iPhone in the parking lot of Macedonia Church on Glass Street in Jackson. The driver said Woodruff threatened to have his family come after her if she pulled over. She also told police Smith used both hands to push her leg down on the accelerator to prevent her from stopping. The driver’s two children, a 7-month-old and 2-year-old, were in the vehicle at the time. Officers reportedly smelled what they thought was marijuana in the vehicle and found a plastic bag containing more than five and a half ounces of marijuana under the front passenger seat. Woodruff is charged with aggravated robbery and being a felon in possession of a firearm in the previous incident. He also is charged with possession of marijuana with intent. He is being held in lieu of a $100,000 bond. Smith is charged with three counts of kidnapping, reckless endangerment and possession of marijuana with intent. She also is being held in lieu of a $100,000 bond.
