Oak Ridge Today

Driver okay, but car totaled in single-vehicle rollover crash on Scarboro Road

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The driver was okay, but his vehicle was reported to be totaled when it rolled over in a single-vehicle crash on Scarboro Road on Monday afternoon, Dec. 14, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The driver was reported to be okay, but his Honda Civic was reported to be totaled when it rolled over in a single-vehicle crash on Scarboro Road on Monday afternoon.

The crash occurred up the hill from Union Valley Road and the main entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex. Authorities reported that the roadway was slick.

The Oak Ridge Police Department briefly closed the road while the crash was investigated and the car towed away.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Scarboro-Road-Car-Roll-over-Police-Fire-Dec-14-2015

The driver was reported to be okay, but his Honda Civic was reported to be totaled when it rolled over in a single-vehicle crash on Scarboro Road on Monday afternoon, Dec. 14, 2015. The Oak Ridge Fire Department and Oak Ridge Police Department both responded. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

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Report: One man robbed, carjacked during ‘bad drug deal’; another shot in foot

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Anderson County Sheriff Patch

One man was allegedly robbed and carjacked on Laurel Road in Anderson County early Monday morning, while another was reportedly shot in the foot as the result of a bad drug deal in Campbell County, authorities said.

Authorities received a report that a 2007 Kia Sportage had been stolen at gunpoint on Laurel Road at about 2 a.m. Monday. The vehicle was reported to be possibly headed to Oak Ridge or Oliver Springs after the alleged carjacking and robbery.

The vehicle was recovered by the Oak Ridge Police Department at Manhattan Apartments on North Purdue Avenue.

Darien Noe of LaFollette told Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Michael A. Poole that two suspects held guns on him and stole his vehicle, shoes, and other items, forcing him to leave the vehicle on Laurel Road, according to an incident report. Noe went to a house on Laurel Road to ask for help, and that resident called 911.

An alert was sent out to other law enforcement agencies to tell them to watch out for the stolen vehicle. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge police seize more than 70 pounds of marijuana

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Nicholas Ryan Salpas

Nicholas Ryan Salpas

With help from other agencies, the Oak Ridge Police Department seized more than 70 pounds of marijuana on Wednesday, authorities said.

Police searched a home on Carlisle Lane in Oak Ridge on Wednesday, December 9, with help from the Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

They seized more than 70 pounds of marijuana in vacuum-sealed bags, as well as one vacuum-sealed bag of suspected concentrated THC resin, a press release said.

Nicholas Salpas, 30, the resident and sole occupant of the home at 102 Carlisle Lane, was arrested at the scene, the release said. He was charged with three counts of manufacture, delivery, sale, or possession of a controlled substance, with an enhancement for this activity occurring within a drug-free school zone; possession of drug paraphernalia; theft of property; and possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony. [Read more…]

Clinton man dies after two-vehicle crash on Oak Ridge Turnpike

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Oak Ridge Police Department Logo

A Clinton man died after a two-vehicle crash on Oak Ridge Turnpike on Thursday, authorities said.

The crash was reported at about 8:22 p.m. Thursday, December 10, at the intersection of the Turnpike and Wisconsin Avenue, the Oak Ridge Police Department said.

Charles Edward Smith, 75, of Clinton was extricated from his vehicle by the Oak Ridge Fire Department and flown to the University of Tennessee Medical Center by a UT Lifestar medical helicopter. He later died from his injuries, the ORPD said.

Smith had been driving a 2012 Volkswagen.

The second vehicle, a 1998 Cadillac, was driven by Janet Eileen Kelley, 61, of Harriman. Kelley was treated at Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge.

The investigation remains ongoing and no further details will be released at this time, the ORPD said.

She alleges abuse, imprisonment, Sharia law; he cites immigration as possible motive for claims

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The wife of a city employee has alleged that she has essentially been held captive in a home that operates under Sharia law, been physically abused, not allowed to work or go to school, and deprived of food and medical care.

But her husband, an Oak Ridge Electric Department project manager, said he can prove that the charges are unfounded. He called the allegations, which were publicized in a newspaper story last month, “salacious accusations.” The allegations sparked a social media backlash against the city employee, Oak Ridge Electric Department Project Manager Ardo Isma Ba.

The Oak Ridge Police Department has investigated some of the allegations against Ba, including the charge that he held his wife, Madina Sall, against her will for the past three years. That information was reported to the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, where Ba is a reserve deputy.

Ba was not charged after the investigation. Officers said Sall’s definition of abuse is different than what is defined in Tennessee law. Also, detectives appeared to have questions about the accuracy of some of the information, and they warned Sall of the consequences of reporting false information to law enforcement.

“The matter did appear to be a non-criminal matter due to the initial information given to (the Knox County Sheriff’s Office) not being accurate and no proof that any physical abuse has occurred,” the ORPD said. [Read more…]

Man injured in truck fire; others OK as fuel ignites

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The driver of a pickup truck that caught on fire on Friday afternoon, Nov. 27, 2015, was taken to the hospital with minor burns, and emergency workers were not injured when fuel vapors ignited after the fire was first extinguished, authorities said. Pictured above are ORFD Battalion Chief Eric Rackard, left, and ORPD Officer Christopher Wallace. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The driver of a pickup truck that caught on fire Friday afternoon was taken to the hospital with minor burns, and emergency workers were not injured when fuel vapors ignited after the fire was first extinguished, authorities said.

The 62-year-old man tried to open the hood of the blue Ford Ranger and put out the fire with a fire extinguisher, said Oak Ridge Fire Department Battalion Chief Eric Rackard. The man, who was not identified, received minor burns on both hands.

The cause of the fire at Diversicare of Oak Ridge, on Elmhurst Drive near Hank’s Market on Emory Valley Road, was unknown.

But a fuel line on the engine ruptured, and gasoline vapors ignited while emergency workers tried to plug the line.

“Anytime you see that, you worry,” Rackard said. [Read more…]

Driver gone, but reports to ER later after vehicle goes off road, ignites

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The driver was gone but reported to an emergency room later after a Ford Explorer went about 40 feet down an embankment along South Illinois Avenue and started on fire on Friday, Nov. 20, 2015, authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The driver was gone when firefighters responded, but the driver reported to an emergency room later after a Ford Explorer went about 40 feet down an embankment along South Illinois Avenue and started on fire last Friday, authorities said.

The vehicle went down an embankment on the right side of the road headed down a big hill into central Oak Ridge, just south of Scarboro Road/Lafayette Drive, on Friday, November 20. The Explorer went sideways down the embankment as it went down the hill and ended up next to a culvert, Oak Ridge Fire Department Battalion Chief David Harrington said.

The northbound lanes of South Illinois Avenue were temporarily blocked as firefighters put out the vehicle fire. [Read more…]

Man taken to hospital, child not injured when truck, boat, trailer roll into water

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A man was taken to the hospital and a child was not injured when a pickup truck, boat, and trailer rolled backward into the Clinch River at Solway Park late Thursday afternoon, authorities said.

The man was pulling the boat out of the water when a young child inside the pickup truck knocked the vehicle out of gear, Oak Ridge Fire Department Battalion Chief David Harrington said. The truck and a boat and trailer that were attached rolled backward into the water at about 4:50 p.m. Thursday.

The man went into the water to get the child and was able to save the kid, who was not injured, but the man got cold from being in the water and was taken to the hospital for an evaluation, Harrington said. [Read more…]

Third arrest in shooting that injured woman’s liver

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Daniel Michael Rose

Daniel Michael Rose

Police have made a third arrest in the November 13 shooting that sent two people to the hospital, one with an injury to her liver, authorities said.

The Oak Ridge Police Department announced two arrests in the shooting last week: Tyler Earl Gulley and Sedrick D. Davis.

The third person, Daniel Michael Rose, 25, of Utica Circle, was arrested Wednesday, November 18. Rose has been charged with aggravated assault. He was released Tuesday, November 24, in lieu of a $50,000 bond, according to court records.

Rose was one of the two people injured in the Friday, November 13, shooting near the intersection of Fisk and Dillard avenues in the Scarboro neighbhood. He was struck in the left foot, police said. [Read more…]

Options for county courthouse in Oak Ridge: Extend lease, stay put, move to govt. building

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The lease on Anderson County General Sessions Court, Division II, on Bus Terminal Road in Oak Ridge expires Dec. 31, but officials will ask for a one-year lease extension while courthouse options are considered. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

CLINTON—Several alternative locations have been proposed, including a city-owned building at A.K. Bissell Park and a county-owned building on Emory Valley Road, but for now, the Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge could remain at a privately owned building on Bus Terminal Road.

Once housed at the Oak Ridge Municipal Building, the General Sessions, Division II, courthouse has been on Bus Terminal Road since January 2009.

But the lease expires December 31.

On Monday, November 16, the Anderson County Commission voted 15-0 on a voice vote to ask for a one-year lease extension with no penalty and to work with Oak Ridge to share courthouse costs.

“That year buys us time to look at all the options,” said County Commissioner Myron Iwanski, who represents District 8, which includes Emory Valley, Woodland, and Hendrix Creek. [Read more…]

Parking lot sweeps at ORHS designed to ensure safe, healthy campus, principal says

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Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Rick Coley and his police dog Justus help conduct a safety check at Oak Ridge High School on Friday, Nov. 20, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The random parking lot sweeps conducted several times per year at Oak Ridge High School with officers and police dogs are meant to help ensure a safe, healthy campus, an official during one sweep Friday.

The school conducted the Friday sweep with help from the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department and Oak Ridge Police Department and several canine officers.

Officials said it was a successful operation, although they declined to give specific information, including because the searches involve juveniles.

It was the first parking lot sweep since new ORHS Principal Martin McDonald replaced David Bryant, who retired this summer. [Read more…]

Wanted fugitive arrested in joint operation with ACSD, ORPD SWAT team

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A wanted fugitive was arrested Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 18, 2015, in a joint operation by the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department and the Oak Ridge Police Department. The operation involved the deployment of the ORPD SWAT team at a home on Robertsville Road. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A wanted fugitive was arrested Wednesday afternoon in a joint operation by the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department and the Oak Ridge Police Department. The operation involved the deployment of the ORPD SWAT team at a home on Robertsville Road.

ACSD Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said deputies received information that Jesse Lee Shackelford, 32, was in the home. Shackelford was wanted on seven outstanding warrants that included felony charges and was reported to be armed with a handgun, Lucas said.

Jesse-Lee-Shackelford

Jesse Lee Shackelford

Deputies and officers surrounded the home, and ORPD SWAT was called to the scene. ORPD SWAT members entered the residence and arrested Shackelford without incident, Lucas said. He said Shackelford was found to be armed with not one but two handguns.

Additional charges for drug and weapons offenses will be forthcoming, Lucas said. Shackelford was also wanted in Knox County on warrants. [Read more…]