Anderson County Archives - Page 20 of 64

Teen rescued from cave in Claxton

Posted at 3:45 pm July 28, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A teenager was rescued from a cave in Claxton on Thursday, July 27, 2017, and he was taken to a hospital to be evaluated for back and ankle pain, authorities said. (Photo by Anderson County Volunteer Rescue Squad)

Note: This story wasÂ updated at 1:30 p.m. July 29.

A teenager was rescued from a cave in Claxton on Thursday, and he was taken to a hospital to be evaluated for back and ankle pain, authorities said.

The 16-year-old boy had called 911 to say he was in a cave off Mehaffey Road in Claxton, and he was not able to find his way out, according to an Anderson County Sheriff’s Department incident report.

The cave was in woods behind Spring Hill Baptist Church.

A family member said the boy had previously asked to go into the cave, the report said. On Thursday, he told his grandmother that he was going to a neighbor’s house to mow the lawn but instead went to the cave alone, the report said. [Read more…]

State asks for 10-year sentence in church theft by former commission chair

Posted at 12:36 pm July 21, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

James Michael Cox

Prosecutors have asked for a 10-year prison sentence for a former Anderson County Commission chair and retired school teacher who has pleaded guilty to stealing more than $60,000 over more than three years from a church in Rocky Topâ€”and allegedly lost more than $37,000 of the stolen money at a casino in North Carolina.

James Michael â€œMikeâ€ Cox is scheduled to be sentenced in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Monday.

Through defense attorney Rhonda F. Lee of Powell, Cox has asked for probation.

Cox was indicted on the Class B felony charge of theft of more than $60,000 on February 2, 2016. The thefts were alleged to have occurred from Longfield Baptist Church, where Cox was church treasurer, between June 1, 2011, and December 1, 2014.

Cox entered a guilty plea on June 1, 2017. The minimum sentence is eight years probation, and the maximum is 12 years in prison, according to court documents.

In a notice filed this past Monday, the state outlined enhancing factors that should be considered by Anderson County Criminal Court Judge Donald R. Elledge when he sentences Cox on Monday, July 24. [Read more…]

Cromwell’s motion for new trial is denied

Posted at 4:52 pm July 16, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Lee Harold Cromwell, 67, the Oak Ridge man convicted of vehicular homicide in a fatal parking lot crash at Midtown Community Center after July 4 fireworks two years ago, was sentenced to 12 years in prison during a hearing in Anderson County Criminal Court on Monday, June 19, 2017. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A judge has denied the motion for a new trial for Lee Harold Cromwell, the man convicted of vehicular homicide in a 2015 fireworks crash at Midtown Community Center in Oak Ridge.

Cromwell, 67, was convicted of one count of vehicular homicide and eight counts of aggravated assault after a three-day trial in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton in February. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison in June.

The crash occurred when Cromwell backed his Dodge Ram pickup truck through the crowded parking lot of the Midtown Community Center after fireworks in Oak Ridge on July 4, 2015. The crash killed James Robinson of Knoxville, a husband and father of two young girls, and it injured at least eight others. Itâ€™s one of the worst crashes anyone can remember in Oak Ridge.

Cromwellâ€™s motion for a new trial was heard by Senior Judge Paul G. Summers in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on June 27.

Summers denied the motion for a new trial that day. He issued an order July 5.

The case has been appealed to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals in Knoxville. [Read more…]

Roane State paramedic alumni earn honors

Posted at 11:11 am July 14, 2017
By Owen Driskill Leave a Comment

Anderson County EMS Director Nathan Sweet, right, presents Lt. Steve Seals, a graduate of Roane State’s paramedic program, with an award naming him the EMS’s “Officer of the Year.” Sweet is also a Roane State paramedic program graduate. (Photo by Roane State)

Graduates of Roane State Community College’s paramedic program continue to distinguish themselves in their professions by earning honors bestowed by peers and supervisors, a press release said.

Two 2005 graduates of the paramedic program were recognized by Anderson County EMS during National EMS Week, held in late May each year.

Lieutenant Steve Seals was named “Officer of the Year,” while Millie Huddleston was recognized as “Paramedic of the Year.”

Co-workers and supervisors nominated them for the recognitions. In those nominations, Seals was described as exemplifying “our core values, including integrity first, service before self, as well as excellence in all we do,” the press release said. [Read more…]

Cromwell sentenced to 12 years in fatal July 4 parking lot crash

Posted at 6:15 pm June 19, 2017
By John Huotari 1 Comment

Note: This story was last updated at 8:20 p.m.

CLINTONâ€”Lee Harold Cromwell, 67,Â the Oak Ridge man convicted of vehicular homicide in a fatal parking lot crash at Midtown Community Center after July 4 fireworks two years ago, was sentenced to 12 years in prison on Monday.

Cromwellâ€”aÂ self-proclaimed sovereign citizen driving on a suspended license, according to court records and testimonyâ€”was actually sentenced in nine separate cases. He had been convicted on all nine counts at the end of a three-day trial in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton in February. Besides reckless vehicular homicide, the nine convictions included eight counts of aggravated assault.

Senior Judge Paul Summers of Nashville announced the effective 12-year sentence at the end of a roughly four-hour sentencing hearing in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Monday afternoon.

The convictions had been split into three groups. The first group included the reckless vehicular homicide conviction, which was filed over the death of James Robinson,Â who died pushing his two young daughters to safety as Cromwell backed his Dodge Ram pickup truck through the crowded parking lot of Midtown Community Center on July 4, 2015. Witnesses said Cromwell backed up at a high rate of speed.Â That first group of convictions also included three aggravated assault convictions for injuries to James Robinson’s wife, Julia Robinson, and their two young daughters, now 11 and nine. Cromwell received an effective five-year sentence for those first four convictions.

Cromwell received an effective four-year sentence for aggravated assault convictions for injuries to two other victims (the second group) and an effective three-year sentence forÂ aggravated assault convictions for injuries to three other victims (the third group).

The three groups of sentences are to be served consecutively for a total of 12 years (five years for the first group of convictions, four years for the second, and three years for the third).

[Read more…]

Defense asks for three-year suspended sentence for Cromwell

Posted at 12:12 pm June 17, 2017
By John Huotari 2 Comments

Lee Harold Cromwell, 68, of Oak Ridge, has been charged with vehicular homicide and eight counts of aggravated assault in a fatal parking lot crash at the Midtown Community Center in Oak Ridge after fireworks on July 4, 2015. Cromwell has been on trial in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton, starting Monday, Feb. 13, 2017, and continuing through Wednesday, Feb. 15. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Prosecutors have asked for an 11-year sentence for Lee Harold Cromwell, 67, of Oak Ridge, for his one vehicular homicide conviction and eight aggravated assault convictions in a fatal parking lot crash at the Midtown Community Center in Oak Ridge after fireworks on July 4, 2015. His defense attorney has asked for a three-year suspended sentence. Cromwell is pictured above during a three-day trial from Feb. 13-15, 2017, in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton. He has a sentencing hearing scheduled for Monday, June 19. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was updated at 5:20 p.m.

CLINTONâ€”A public defender has asked for a three-year suspended sentence for Lee Cromwell, the Oak Ridge man convicted of one count of vehicular homicide and eight counts of aggravated assault in the fatal parking lot crash at Midtown Community Center after fireworks on July 4, 2015.

The three-year suspended sentence would be much less than what prosecutors have requested, an effective 11-year sentence.

Cromwell, 67, has a sentencing hearing scheduled with Senior Judge Paul Summers in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton at 1 p.m. Monday, June 19.

The July 4 fireworks crashÂ killed James Robinson of Knoxville,Â a 37-year-old husband and father who was trying to push his two daughters to safety. The crash injured eight others. Itâ€™s one of the worst crashes anyone can remember in Oak Ridge.

Cromwell wasÂ convicted of the vehicular homicide and aggravated assault chargesÂ after a three-day trialÂ in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton in February. His initial sentencing hearing was postponedÂ because Cromwell did not want private attorney James Scott representing him anymore. Anderson County Public Defender Tom Marshall has been appointed instead. Scott had previously filed a motion to withdraw from the case and then renewed it during an April 11 hearing, citing irreconcilable differences with Cromwell, according to court records.

In April, Deputy District Attorney General Anthony J. Craighead of the Seventh Judicial District in Anderson County asked for the effective 11-year sentence to be served in a state prison. Craighead asked for that sentence in a notice of enhancement factors that was filed in Anderson County Criminal Court. [Read more…]

Former officer, football player reaches plea agreement in statutory rape case

Posted at 1:40 pm June 16, 2017
By John Huotari 1 Comment

Cassen Jackson-Garrison, a former police officer and professional football player, has agreed to plead guilty to statutory rape and official misconduct, and he will be sentenced to two years of supervised probation, officials said this week. Jackson-Garrison is pictured above standing at right during a plea agreement hearing in Anderson County Criminal Court on Monday, June 12, 2017. At left is his attorney Greg Isaacs of Knoxville. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

CLINTONâ€”Cassen Jackson-Garrison, a former police officer and professional football player, has agreed to plead guilty to statutory rape and official misconduct, and he will be sentenced to two years of supervised probation, officials said this week.

Jackson-Garrison, 32, had a plea agreement hearing in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Monday. He is a former Oak Ridge Police Department officer who once played football for Vanderbilt University and the Kansas City Chiefs.

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Cassen Jackson-Garrison, a former police officer and professional football player, has agreed to plead guilty to statutory rape and official misconduct, and he will be sentenced to two years of supervised probation, officials said this week. Jackson-Garrison is pictured above standing at right during a plea agreement hearing in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Monday, June 12, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The rest of this story, which you will read only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.

Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here.

Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:

Basic

Pro

Temporary

Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also haveÂ advanced subscription options. You can see themÂ here.

We also acceptÂ donations. You can donateÂ here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Scott Gray, who has been indicted on vehicular homicide and other charges, is pictured above during a preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court, Division I, in Clinton on Thursday, Aug. 11, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

CLINTONâ€”A Knoxville man has been indicted on vehicular homicide and other charges in theÂ death of a 23-year-old Heiskell woman after a two-vehicle crash on Clinton Highway in April 2016.

The specific homicide charge againstÂ Scott Allen Gray, 27, is vehicular homicide by intoxication. Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers testified during an August 11 preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court, Division I, in Clinton that GrayÂ smelled of alcohol and said he had been drinking and taken two anti-anxiety pills before the crash. Gray’s passenger, Jessica Miner Taylor, died about a week after the crash.

The Anderson County Grand Jury also indicted Gray on charges of reckless endangerment when a deadly weapon (a motor vehicle) is involved; failure to yield the right of way, resulting in death; failure of provide evidence of insurance; failure to carry a certificate of registration; failure to use due care; violation of the open container law; possession of drug paraphernalia; and possession of marijuana.

Gray had an arraignment and bond hearing scheduled this past Friday in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton.

Charges against Gray were bound over, or sent to the Grand Jury, during the preliminary hearing in August. The indictments were filed May 2. An indictment moves a case from Anderson County General Sessions Court to Anderson County Criminal Court. [Read more…]