Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Adam Wayne Christmas, Jr., 21, was arrested yesterday and charged with loitering/prowling and resisting an officer without violence during an investigation of shots fired at Hickory Place Apartments (4000 SW 23rd St). He was released from the Alachua County Jail three weeks ago after being arrested for aggravated domestic battery.

Gainesville Police Department Officers responded to the apartment complex at about 6:30 p.m. on Friday night, where Christmas was reportedly seen walking through the complex; Christmas reportedly matched the description of a suspect who had fired shots and fled the area on foot. Witnesses reportedly told officers that they had seen Christmas run into the wood line and then back into the complex before officers located him.

When Christmas saw the officers, he allegedly ran but was apprehended.

Post Miranda, Christmas was reportedly unable to provide a reason for being at the complex. He reportedly mentioned a friend named Seth, but he could not provide Seth’s apartment number, and an officer was unable to reach Seth after Christmas gave the officer permission to use his phone.

Christmas was previously arrested on April 8 for aggravated domestic battery after allegedly breaking a woman’s nose; he has also been formally charged with battery and resisting an officer without violence in that case. The State Attorney’s Office (SAO) made a motion to hold him without bail until trial, based on the charge of aggravated battery and the “substantial probability that the defendant poses the threat of harm to the community.” However, after the first scheduled hearing on the motion was continued, the motion was withdrawn by the SAO, and Judge David Kreider set bail at $20,000; Christmas posted bail on April 25 and was released with an ankle monitor.

Christmas has no criminal convictions, but a charge of battery was dropped in 2022, and a felony charge of domestic battery by strangulation was dropped in 2023. Judge James Colaw set bail on the new misdemeanor charges at $2,000 and ordered Christmas held without bail in the aggravated battery case.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.