Oak Ridge Today

ORPD: Intoxicated man poses as ORHS student

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William Edward Lay

William Edward Lay

A 25-year-old Sunbright man who was intoxicated tried to “pass himself off” as an Oak Ridge High School student in at least two classrooms last week, the first week of school, before being stopped in a second floor hallway during a class change, authorities said.

William Edward Lay had obtained a student’s classroom schedule, but he had no identification and continuously gave School Resource Officer Sherrill Selby the wrong birth date, Social Security number, and other identifying information, according to arrest warrants filed in Anderson County General Sessions Court.

Selby, an Oak Ridge Police Department officer, said Lay was unsteady on his feet and fell into the wall several times. She had been called to investigate a report of a suspicious male walking around and into classrooms at ORHS.

“Defendant’s eyes were red and glassy looking,” Selby said. [Read more…]

Student lights desk on fire; RMS bomb threat appears unfounded, ORPD says

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James T. Akagi

James T. Akagi

Note: This story was last updated at 3:58 p.m.

A 16-year-old student at the Alternative School used hand sanitizer and a lighter to ignite another student’s desktop on Wednesday, authorities said.

Students extinguished the fire, and the suspect was arrested at the Alternative School on Thursday. He was processed at the Oak Ridge Police Department on aggravated arson charges and taken to the Richard L. Bean Juvenile Detention Facility in Knoxville, a press release said.

In a separate incident, authorities determined that a report of an alleged bomb threat at Robertsville Middle School on Monday was unfounded, and no criminal charges are expected.

The ORPD said the desk was set on fire just before dismissal at the Alternative School on Wednesday. The Alternative School is next to the Oak Ridge High School and on the same campus. Staff at the Alternative School notified School Resource Office Sherrill Selby about the incident via e-mail. [Read more…]

Guest column: School safety update

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Trina Baughn

Trina Baughn

Since the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Oak Ridge Schools and the Oak Ridge Police Department (ORPD) last August, a number of significant safety improvements have occurred within our schools including physical security upgrades, leadership adjustments, and increased police presence.

As you may know, this time last year, we had only one School Resource Officer (SRO) covering our entire school district. Now we have two full time SROs, two Support Services Unit (SSU) officers manning satellite offices, and the Adopt-a-Cop program, which provides officer time in all of our schools via daily check-ins. A third satellite office is in the works as ORPD Chief Jim Akagi and Superintendent Bruce Borchers are presently working on stationing an SSU officer at Robertsville Middle School.

Chief Akagi recently invited me to join our SROs on a walk-along at the high school to personally observe the impact of these changes. He also encouraged me to tag along with our S.W.A.T. team during a threat assessment exercise. I took him up on both offers and, as a result, am sharing what I learned. [Read more…]

New SRO approved at Oak Ridge Schools, could start Monday

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Oak Ridge City Council

The Oak Ridge City Council voted 5-1 on Monday to approve a move that allows another school resource officer, or SRO, to be added to Oak Ridge Schools.

Note: This story was updated at 9:45 a.m. Jan. 14.

The Oak Ridge City Council approved a move on Monday that will add a second school resource officer in the city’s schools, and the new SRO could start Monday.

The new SRO is Oak Ridge Police Department Officer Michael Swigert. The current SRO is Officer Sherrill Selby.

It’s not as big a step as some officials had proposed during the past few years. There have been various proposals to have a total of three SROs, including one at each of the city’s two middle schools, or even more, perhaps one SRO at each school. The discussions seemed to gain urgency after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., in December 2012, but funding has been an obstacle. [Read more…]

Four students found with drugs, hatchet, ski mask, ORPD says

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Oak Ridge High School

Oak Ridge High School is pictured above.

A 14-year-old male who refused to go to school on Wednesday possessed a tactical load bearing vest, and four students detained Thursday, including one adult student, were found near Oak Ridge High School in a car that contained drugs, a ski mask, and a hatchet, authorities said.

The news comes less than one day after the Oak Ridge Police Department announced it seized a stolen, loaded gun from the car of a student who had allegedly caused a disturbance at Oak Ridge High School and said a knife had been seized from a student during an altercation on a school bus.

In a Thursday morning press release, the ORPD said officers responded to a report of an unruly juvenile at a home on Baypath Drive at about 7:30 a.m. Wednesday.

“When officers arrived, they met with the mother and older sibling of a 14 year-old juvenile male who had refused to go to school,” the press release said. “Officers interviewed the juvenile and noted he was in possession of a tactical load bearing vest. Officers ultimately assisted in transporting the juvenile to the Methodist Medical Center emergency room for an evaluation, as well as coordinating with Juvenile Court authorities and referring the incident to DCS for follow-up. No criminal charges were filed. However, the investigation remains ongoing, and no further details will be released at this time.” [Read more…]

Stolen, loaded gun seized from student’s car at ORHS; knife seized in separate incident

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Oak Ridge High School

Oak Ridge High School is pictured above.

A stolen, loaded .357 magnum revolver was seized from the car of a student who had been causing a disturbance at Oak Ridge High School on Wednesday afternoon, authorities said.

Police officers also found marijuana packaged for resale and suspected drug money exceeding $950 in the car of the unidentified 17-year-old male, who was arrested and taken to Juvenile Court in Clinton, the Oak Ridge Police Department said.

In a separate incident earlier Wednesday afternoon, a folding stainless steel knife was seized from a male high school student during an altercation on a school bus.

Police were investigating that incident, reported to have occurred at about 2:47 p.m. Wednesday, when ORPD School Resource Officer Sherrill Selby was sent to the high school in response to a juvenile student causing a disturbance during a disciplinary meeting with high school staff. Selby and the staff learned that the boy could be armed or have a weapon in his car. Selby detained him in the disciplinary hearing and called for backup. [Read more…]

Two more police officers, sergeant stationed at ORHS, Alternative School

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Oak Ridge High School

Three more Oak Ridge Police Department officers are stationed at Oak Ridge High School and Alternative School this year. The ORPD now has a school resource officer, a sergeant, and two non-patrol officers at the two schools.

Three more Oak Ridge Police Department officers are stationed at Oak Ridge High School and Alternative School this year. However, they are not school resource officers, or SROs.

For the past few years, the ORPD has had an SRO who works mostly at the high school. This year, though, a sergeant and two non-patrol officers are also stationed there and at the Alternative School next door, ORPD Chief Jim Akagi said Monday.

School officials had requested more SROs this year, following the December massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., but funding has been an obstacle. While the new arrangement doesn’t add SROs, it will increase the police presence and visibility, Akagi said.

[Read more…]

Report: Oak Ridge police officer assaulted by high school student

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An Oak Ridge High School student allegedly threatened a teacher and punched a police officer trying to escort him out of the cafeteria on Thursday, authorities said.

The student, Christopher Lee Arwood, 18, had allegedly “become disorderly in the school cafeteria and threatened a teacher with violence” at about 11:05 a.m. Thursday, court records said.

Oak Ridge Police Officer Sherrill Selby, who is the school resource officer, tried to intervene and escort Arwood from the cafeteria, which was full of students, an affidavit said.

[Read more…]