Oak Ridge Today

Jury in first-degree murder trial could be sequestered up to 2 weeks

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Norman Lee Follis

Norman Lee Follis

CLINTON—The jury in a first-degree murder trial that continues in Clinton on Monday could be sequestered for up to two weeks, a prosecutor said Friday.

That means jurors will be “separate and apart from others” during that time, said Tony Craighead, deputy district attorney general in the Seventh Judicial District (Anderson County). Jurors will only be able to communicate with others by using the phone of a law enforcement officer and only under the supervision of an officer.

“You cannot have any contact with the outside world,” Craighead said in Anderson County Circuit and Criminal Court in Clinton as prosecutors and defense attorney Mart Cizek questioned potential jurors in the courtroom and dismissed some, often four at a time.

Jurors can’t have cell phones or electronic devices, such as tablets or iPads. They can bring printed books, but not electronic ones. They will be prohibited from reading, hearing, or seeing any news about the trial for Norman Lee Follis Jr., 52, who has been charged with first-degree murder, property theft of more than $1,000, and forgery. [Read more…]

Eleven indicted in alleged conspiracy to sell 300 grams or more of cocaine

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Jordan Antwan Jones

Jordan Antwan Jones

Note: This story was last updated at 10:25 p.m. May 9.

Eleven Oak Ridge and Knoxville residents were indicted May 3 on charges that they conspired to manufacture, distribute, and sell 300 grams or more of cocaine-based products last year.

The alleged cocaine conspiracy occurred between May 14 and December 23, 2015. The indictments were filed May 3, 2016.

The 11 indicted are:

  • Jordan Antwan Jones, 28, Tracy Lane, in Oak Ridge;
  • Deangelo James Galbreath, 28, Deer Run Drive, Knoxville;
  • Laquan Bernard Barber, 32, Hillside Road, Oak Ridge;
  • Derrick Jemail Anthony, 38, South Fisk Avenue, Oak Ridge;
  • Christopher Shane Black, 28, West Pasadena Lane, Oak Ridge;
  • Nicholas O’Brien Mitchell, 32, Tracy Lane, Oak Ridge;
  • William Ralph Sanders Jr., 38, South Benedict Avenue, Oak Ridge;
  • Alfred Lee Jones, 49, Black Rock Circle, Knoxville;
  • Ellen Michelle Sanders, 31, Nasson Lane, Oak Ridge;
  • Sarah Denise Cupp, 30, Aloha Avenue, Knoxville; and
  • Efia Ann Hull, 38, Deer Run Drive, Knoxville.

They are each facing Class A felony charges of:

  • conspiracy to manufacture 300 grams or more of cocaine,
  • conspiracy to distribute 300 grams or more of cocaine,
  • conspiracy to sell 300 grams or more of cocaine, and
  • conspiracy to possess with the intent to manufacture, deliver, or sell 300 grams or more of cocaine.

They have also been indicted on Class A felony charges of: [Read more…]

Jail records: About two dozen arrests on drug-related charges Thursday

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Dave Clark

Dave Clark

Note: This story was last updated at 8:26 a.m.

There were about two dozen arrests on drug-related charges in Anderson County on Thursday, according to jail records, as authorities from several agencies swept through Oak Ridge and possibly other communities in what they’ve described as a multi-county criminal investigation.

The most common charge, by far, is manufacturing, delivering, selling, or possessing a controlled substance, according to Anderson County jail records. Counts on that charge vary from one to two dozen, according to jail records, with many of those arrested facing in the range of eight to 11 counts.

Other charges listed against a few of those arrested include possessing a firearm in the commission of a felony, unlawfully carrying a weapon, possessing drug paraphernalia, tampering with evidence, property theft, and simple possession.

Most of those arrested are listed as Oak Ridge residents, but there are also residents of Knoxville, Clinton, Kingston, and Madisonville. The defendants range in age from 20-61. [Read more…]

Officials to report on multi-county criminal investigation on Monday

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Dave Clark

Dave Clark

Note: This story was updated at 5:48 p.m.

Local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies will report on Monday on a multi-county criminal investigation that has lasted several years, authorities said Thursday.

The investigation has been complex and is unprecedented in several ways, according to a brief statement on Thursday afternoon from Dave Clark, district attorney general in the Seventh Judicial District (Anderson County).

Media have been invited to attend the Monday afternoon press conference in Clark’s office in Clinton. [Read more…]

Jury selection starts this week in first-degree murder, death penalty case

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Norman Lee Follis

Norman Lee Follis

A jury will be selected this week in the trial of a man facing first-degree murder charges in the death of his 79-year-old uncle, whose body was found hidden underneath an apartment staircase in Claxton in 2012, authorities said.

Jury selection in the trial of Norman Lee Follis Jr., 52, is scheduled for Wednesday through Friday this week, and the trial is scheduled to continue on Monday, May 9, in Anderson County Criminal and Circuit Court in Clinton. Three days have been scheduled for the trial next week, although court officials said it’s possible that more time could be needed.

The state is seeking the death penalty against Follis and Tammy Sue Chapman, 47, who has also been charged with first-degree murder. The pair is accused of killing Sammie J. Adams, 79, who was Follis’ uncle, sometime between December 5, 2011, and January 24, 2012. Adams’ body was found under a stairwell in his home after friends and neighbors reported that they hadn’t seen him in a while, Anderson County District Attorney General Dave Clark said in an August 2014 press release.

Adams’ age—he was over 70—was an aggravating factor leading to the death penalty request, Clark said.

It’s the first death penalty case in Anderson County in decades. Deputy District Attorney General Tony Craighead and Assistant DA Emily Abbott will prosecute the case.

Follis is represented by defense attorneys Mart S. Cizek and Wesley D. Stone. [Read more…]

Driver charged in two-vehicle crash that injured three on Thursday

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Clinton-Highway-Crash-April-28-2016

Three people were injured in a two-vehicle crash on Clinton Highway at Mehaffey Road at about 5:27 p.m. Thursday, April 28, 2016. The vehicles included the Jeep Grand Cherokee pictured at left center and the Eagle Vision that is partially obscured behind an emergency vehicle at right. The driver of the Eagle has been charged by the THP. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

CLAXTON—A Knoxville man was charged with vehicular assault and driving under the influence after a two-vehicle crash injured three people on Clinton Highway on Thursday, authorities said.

Scott Gray, 26, of Knoxville, also faces eight more charges that allege additional violations: open container, simple possession of Schedule IV drugs, drug paraphernalia, due care, improper turn, failure to yield, financial responsibility, and a registration violation, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, which investigated the crash. The DUI offense is a second offense, according to a THP preliminary crash report.

The THP responded to the crash on Clinton Highway at Mehaffey Road at 5:27 p.m. Thursday. Mehaffey Road is a short drive past Edgemoor Road headed toward Knoxville on Clinton Highway. Headed toward Knoxville, it’s near the beginning of a hilly, curvy stretch of Clinton Highway that winds into Knox County from Anderson County.

Authorities said Gray was driving north on Clinton Highway in a 1993 Eagle Vision sedan when he turned into the path of a southbound 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee sport utility vehicle driven by Kimberly Williamson, 32, of Knoxville. [Read more…]

AC public works director not guilty on all five counts

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David Crowley

David Crowley

 

Note: This story was last updated at 5:50 p.m.

CLINTON—Anderson County Public Works Director David Crowley has been found not guilty on charges that he conducted building inspections without proper certifications.

A seven-man, five-woman jury found Crowley not guilty on all five counts after deliberating for about one hour and 45 minutes Thursday.

Crowley had been accused of violating the state’s building official certification law.

With the acquittals on Thursday, he can seek to have the charges expunged from his record, Anderson County Criminal and Circuit Court Judge Don Elledge said.

A few key questions raised in the trial had been whether five building inspections conducted by Crowley between October and December 2013, when he was not certified by the state, were within a 12-month grace period and whether they posed a danger to life, safety, health, and welfare. The question of when the grace period started depended upon whether Crowley’s interim hiring in September 2012 should be considered the starting point, or whether it should be his permanent appointment in November 2012 or his first inspection in February 2013.

The trial started Wednesday morning in Anderson County Criminal and Circuit Court, and it ended Thursday afternoon. [Read more…]

Traffic alert on I-75 due to bridge repairs, construction work

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Traffic Alert

The Tennessee Department of Transportation says bridge repairs and related construction work will require temporary lane closures in Anderson County. The lane changes will be through Thursday, May 5.

Interstate 75 Northbound will be reduced to one lane between Mile Markers 122 and 123 on Thursday, April 28, from 7 p.m. until 6 a.m., and then again on Friday, April 29, from 9 p.m. through Monday, May 2, at 6 a.m.

On Thursday, May 5, I-75 Northbound will be again reduced to one lane between Mile Marker 122 and Mile Marker 123 from 7 p.m. until 6 a.m.

Please expect delays if traveling in this area.

Information from Anderson County Sheriff’s Department

WYSH: Clinton crash injures motorcyclist

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Information from WYSH Radio, an Oak Ridge Today news partner

A car-motorcycle crash in south Clinton late Monday morning sent one man to the hospital by Lifestar medical helicopter, authorities said.

The crash occurred just before 11 a.m. Monday on Clinch Avenue in front of the Icon Market.

The Clinton Police Department said that 54-year-old John Aulton of Clinton had been headed north on Clinch Avenue on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle when a southbound Cadillac sedan driven by 75-year-old Billy Ashe of Clinton tried to turn left into the market. But his car ended up in the path of Aulton’s motorcycle, authorities said, and even though Aulton reportedly locked his brakes, he struck the right front side of the Cadillac and was thrown off the bike. [Read more…]

Sheriff’s Department warns of scam alert

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Scam Alert

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department has once again received reports of someone calling residents in Anderson County threatening arrest for failing to appear in court.

These scam artists are identifying themselves as members of the Sheriff’s Department and telling the people called that they need to obtain a prepaid debit card and give the callers the card number.

This is the same scam as reported in the past, a press release said. Please be aware law enforcement agencies or court clerk’s offices do not make calls such as these!

If you have been the victim of this scam, please contact the Sheriff’s Communications Center at (865) 457-2414, or your local police department.

Copyright 2016 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Updated: Son of former state rep dies in head-on crash on Dutch Valley Road on Thursday

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Note: This story was last updated at 1:10 p.m.

A 42-year-old man, the son of a former state representative, died in a head-on crash on Dutch Valley Road in Anderson County on Thursday afternoon, authorities said.

Michael J. Hackworth, 42, was traveling south on Dutch Valley Road in a 2002 Honda Accord when a 2004 Ford Escape driven north by George E. Ross, 70, crossed the center line, hitting Hackworth’s vehicle head-on, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said.

Hackworth was killed, and Ross was injured, the THP said. Hackworth is the son of former Tennessee Representative Jim Hackworth, a Democrat who is a former Anderson County commissioner and former candidate for Anderson County mayor.

“We’re all pretty devastated by the news,” said Catherine Denenberg, Anderson County Democratic Party chair. “It’s a tragedy…Our deepest sympathies go out to Jim and Brenda (Hackworth) and their family at this sudden loss. Please keep them in your prayers.”

[Read more…]

One flown to UT after ATV-motorcycle crash on Hillvale Road

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Note: This story was updated at 4:35 p.m.

A 23-year-old man was flown to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries after a motorcycle and all-terrain vehicle crashed on Hillvale Road in Anderson County on Monday afternoon, authorities said.

At the time of the crash, Caleb Tyler Burrell, 23, of Clinton, was traveling south on Hillvale Road on a 2014 Yamaha YFR motorcycle behind a 2013 Ranger side-by-side ATV driven by Wesley Edward Tilley, 38, of Andersonville, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said.

Tilley was trying to make a left turn off Hillvale Road onto a private drive when Burrell tried to pass the ATV, the THP said.

The motorcycle driven by Burrell hit the ATV driven by Tilley at an angle, a preliminary report said. [Read more…]