Texas Felon Arrested On Weapon, Conduct Charges In Salem

SALEM, NH — A Texas man, visiting family in Salem, was arrested New Year's Day after an incident on Shadow Lake Road.

Officers were sent to the area of the Speedway on North Broadway just before 4 a.m. for a report of a man getting into an argument with his family, while intoxicated, and armed with a sword.

The first arriving officer found the suspect, George Deveau, 56, of Aransas Pass, Texas, walking on the road. He was wearing a poncho with a large bulge sticking out from underneath it as well as a backpack, police said. Deveau, the officer said, began swearing and was repeatedly requested by police to put his hands above his head.

Other officers and a lieutenant arrived as the first officer continued to try and get Deveau to put his hands into the air so they could check him for weapons but he kept swearing and "moving his arms around and was reaching to different areas of his body," a report stated. The reporting officer noted there was a long handle protruding from the backpack. Deveau eventually threw the backpack on the ground, while it was connected to his pants by a loop, and when doing so, it was revealed that the handle was a machete.

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"We feared that Deveau would reach for the machete on the ground and it was unknown if he had any other weapons on his person or in the backpack that was still connected to his person," the officer wrote.

Deveau then placed his hands on his head but was accused of refusing to comply to other commands including dropping to his knees so he could be contained all while swearing and giving police the finger, an affidavit stated. After multiple warnings, including a prompt that he would be shot with a bean bag if he did not comply, Deveau goaded officers to shoot him, the affidavit said. So, one did. The first beanbag grazed Deveau's hip but a second one struck him in the back and he slumped to the ground. An officer ran in to place him in handcuffs but he was accused of struggling. With the help of other officers, Deveau was handcuffed.

During a search, Deveau was accused of being in possession of three knives and a machete. He was arrested and held.

On Monday, Deveau was released on $200 cash bail after being arraigned in Rockingham County Superior Court. He is due back in court for a dispositional conference hearing on Feb. 18.

Deveau is a felon due to felony burglary, reckless conduct, and criminal threatening convictions in May 1996 after an incident in Laconia.

Editor's note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Salem Police Department and does not indicate a conviction. This link explains the removal request process for New Hampshire Patch police reports.

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