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Attempted carjacking charge added in crash that injured officer

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Khristoff Deshawn Lee

An attempted carjacking charge has been added to the eight charges already filed against a man accused of injuring an Oak Ridge officer when he fled from police and crashed on South Illinois Avenue last week.

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Khristoff Deshawn Lee

Khristoff Deshawn Lee

An attempted carjacking charge has been added to the eight charges already filed against a man accused of injuring an Oak Ridge officer when he fled from police and crashed on South Illinois Avenue last week.

Khristoff Deshawn Lee

An attempted carjacking charge has been added to the eight charges already filed against a man accused of injuring an Oak Ridge officer when he fled from police and crashed on South Illinois Avenue last week.

The rest of this story 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

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 have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate 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!

Three arrested after alleged robbery

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The Oak Ridge Police Department arrested three people at Staples on Monday, April 9, 2018, in connection with an alleged robbery at an Oak Ridge residence. (Photo by Oak Ridge Police Department)

The Oak Ridge Police Department arrested three people at Staples on Monday, April 9, 2018, in connection with an alleged robbery at an Oak Ridge residence. (Photo by Oak Ridge Police Department)

  The Oak Ridge Police Department arrested three people on Monday, April 9, in connection with an alleged robbery at an Oak Ridge residence, authorities said. Around 5 p.m., Joshua Young, 37, of Oak Ridge, and Benjamin Davis, 27, of Powell, allegedly forced their way into the home of the victim on East Tennessee Avenue, the ORPD said. The victim said that a friend had sold a game console to Davis and that Davis later returned with Young. The victim told officers that Davis claimed the console he purchased was broken and that the victim needed to return his money or he was taking something of equal value, the ORPD said. The victim said Young and Davis forced him to sit on the couch while they took a tablet computer and an undetermined amount of cash before leaving his residence, officers said. The victim stated that he observed Young and Davis get into a vehicle driven by a woman who was later identified as Hannah Phillips, 27, of Oliver Springs, the ORPD said. [Read more…]

Mental health evaluation ordered for man charged with terrorism

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Agey Christopher Stamey

Agey Christopher Stamey

 

A mental health evaluation has been ordered for a man who was charged with terrorism in January after allegedly threatening to blow up Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge with dynamite and shoot everyone inside with a shotgun.

The first evaluation for Agey C. Stamey II, 40, of Knoxville,was ordered at Ridgeview Psychiatric Hospital by Anderson County General Sessions Court Judge Roger Miller on January 25. The appointment had been scheduled for February 21, according to court records.

A second order, filed March 6, said Ridgeview had recommended that Stamey be referred to the Moccasin Bend Mental Health Institute in Chattanooga for an evaluation. A transport order filed Thursday said Stamey has an appointment scheduled for April 19.

The evaluation is expected to determine Stamey’s competency to stand trial and mental condition at the time of the crime (the insanity defense). [Read more…]

Officer injured in crash released from hospital

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An Oak Ridge Police Department officer was injured in a crash and children were taken to the hospital after a fugitive crashed a car as he fled from police on Wednesday, April 5, 2018, authorities said. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge/Oak Ridge Police Department)

The Oak Ridge Police Department officer injured in a crash allegedly caused by a fugitive who was fleeing from police on Wednesday, April 4, 2018, has been released from the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, a spokesperson said Friday. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge/Oak Ridge Police Department)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 9:55 a.m.

The officer injured in a crash allegedly caused by a fugitive who was fleeing from police on Wednesday has been released from the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, a spokesperson confirmed Friday.

Oak Ridge Police Department Officer Nathan Gibson was injured while trying to make a traffic stop and serve a warrant on Khristoff Deshawn Lee, 24, of Oak Ridge, on South Illinois Avenue at about 12:37 p.m. Wednesday, according to affidavits filed in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge.

Gibson has been discharged, UT Medical Center spokesperson Susan Wyatt said Friday afternoon. No information is available on his present condition.

It’s not clear what charges might have been in the warrant Gibson was trying to serve on Lee on Wednesday, but a writ of criminal capias had been issued for Lee after he failed to appear at a plea agreement hearing on attempted first-degree murder and robbery charges, among other pending charges, in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on August 14. [Read more…]

Officer injured, children taken to hospital after fugitive flees from police

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An Oak Ridge Police Department officer was injured in a crash and children were taken to the hospital after a fugitive crashed a car as he fled from police on Wednesday, April 4, 2018, authorities said. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge/Oak Ridge Police Department)

An Oak Ridge Police Department officer was injured in a crash and children were taken to the hospital after a fugitive crashed a car as he fled from police on Wednesday, April 4, 2018, authorities said. (Photo by City of Oak Ridge/Oak Ridge Police Department)

An Oak Ridge Police Department officer was injured in a crash and children were taken to the hospital after a fugitive crashed a car as he fled from police on Wednesday, authorities said.

The ORPD learned that a known felony suspect was in the area just before 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release.Shortly after they received the information, officers located the vehicle that they believed contained the fugitive and they attempted to conduct a traffic stop near the intersection of South Illinois Avenue and Woodland Terrace.

But the driver refused to stop, entered the Panera Bread and Aubrey’s Restaurant parking area and proceeded through the lot at an unsafe rate of speed, striking at least one other vehicle, the city said.

The fugitive, Khristoff Lee, was initially a passenger in the vehicle, but he forced the female driver to switch seats with him upon seeing officers, the press release said. [Read more…]

Woman receives three-year sentence in drug overdose

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Heather Marie Rau

Heather Marie Rau

 

An Oak Ridge woman received a three-year prison sentence in a plea agreement on Monday after a drug overdose that reportedly involved a fentanyl analogue last year left a man unconscious on a hallway floor with a very weak pulse and unable to breathe on his own.

Heather Mariue Rau, 30, pleaded guilty in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Monday to charges of aggravated assault, reckless endangerment with illegal narcotics (acrylfentanyl), promotion of methamphetamine manufacture, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drugs for sale, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Those charges were from two separate indictments against Rau last year.

A second, duplicate charge of possession of drug paraphernalia was dismissed as part of the plea agreement.

Rau must pay court costs and fines that appear to total close to $9,000, according to criminal judgements filed by the Anderson County Circuit Court Clerk. She will receive credit for time served after being jailed at the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton since February 16, 2017. As a standard offender, her release eligibility has been set at 30 percent. [Read more…]

Anderson County residents among 44 indicted in meth distribution conspiracy

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A group of Anderson County residents was part of an alleged methamphetamine distribution ring that involved 44 people and a conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine in East Tennessee and elsewhere, federal officials said Monday.

A 30-count indictment was returned against the 44 people by a federal grand jury in Greeneville in East Tennessee on January 9. Among those indicted were nine residents of Clinton, Oliver Springs, Powell, and Rocky Top, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Eastern District of Tennessee on Monday. There were also four Knoxville residents indicted and a dozen in Bristol and Kingsport in upper East Tennessee, among other defendants in Tennessee, Georgia, and Virginia.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Department, Clinton Police Department, Oak Ridge Police Department, Oliver Springs Police Department, and Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force in Anderson County were among the agencies that helped with the investigation, the press release said.

Here are the people that were indicted in the alleged methamphetamine distribution conspiracy: [Read more…]

Woman indicted on carjacking, attempted robbery charges

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Sheila K Jones

Sheila K. Jones

 

An Oliver Springs woman has been indicted on charges of attempted robbery, carjacking, and assault, among other counts, after she allegedly took a vehicle from another Oliver Springs woman in Oak Ridge in May and fled from police, according to Anderson County court records.

The specific charges against Sheila Kaye Jones, 43, include carjacking, attempted robbery, assault, reckless endangerment when a deadly weapon is involved, reckless driving, evading arrest, and driving on a suspended or revoked license with six prior offenses. Jones was indicted by the Anderson County Grand Jury in Clinton on March 13.

She has an arraignment set for Monday, March 26, in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton.

Jones has been jailed at the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton since May 10.

Charges against Jones were bound over, or sent to the grand jury, after a preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge on August 22. [Read more…]

Woman arrested for probation violation after fatal creek crash

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Rebecca L. Vanasse

Rebecca L. Vanasse

 

An Oak Ridge woman was arrested on a probation violation charge after a fatal crash in Poplar Creek in Roane County on Tuesday, authorities said.

Rebecca L. Vanasse, 26, of North Purdue Avenue, was arrested by the Oak Ridge Police Department on the violation of probation charge on Tuesday, according to Anderson County court and jail records. A hold has also been placed on Vanasse for Rhea County, and she remained jailed at the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton on Thursday morning, according to those records.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Mark Lucas confirmed that Vanasse is the same woman who has been identified as the driver in the fatal creek crash on Poplar Creek Road on Tuesday. She was arrested by ORPD after she was treated and released from the emergency room, Lucas said.

“We had a probation violation warrant and Rhea County had a warrant as well,” he said. [Read more…]

Criminal charges pending in fatal crash in Poplar Creek

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A 50-year-old Rocky Top man died when a 2006 Mazda car crashed off Poplar Creek Road and into Poplar Creek just north of west Oak Ridge late Tuesday morning, authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A 50-year-old Rocky Top man died when a 2006 Mazda 3 car crashed off Poplar Creek Road and into Poplar Creek just north of west Oak Ridge late Tuesday morning, authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

ROANE COUNTY—A 50-year-old Rocky Top man died and one person was injured when a car crashed off Poplar Creek Road and into Poplar Creek just north of west Oak Ridge late Tuesday morning, and criminal charges are pending, authorities said.

The man who died, Warner D. Martin, was a passenger in a silver 2006 Mazda 3 four-door car driven by Rebecca L. Vanasse, 26, of Oak Ridge, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol.

Carrying three people, the car swerved on the narrow, curvy road and overcorrected, the THP said in a fatality report. Because of the overcorrection, the vehicle went down an embankment along the westbound side of the road and into the creek, where it became fully submerged, the THP said.

The single-vehicle crash was reported on Poplar Creek Road a few miles east of Blair Road at about 11:04 a.m. Tuesday. The front end of the car appeared to have plunged into the creek first. [Read more…]

Man accused of robbing pregnant woman, kicking her in stomach

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Jordan Lamar Young

Jordan Lamar Young

 

An Oak Ridge man allegedly broke into an apartment on Utica Circle on Monday, threatened a pregnant woman while brandishing a folding pocket knife, and demanded prescriptions and cash, Anderson County court records said. When the woman resisted, the court records said, she was thrown to the ground and kicked in the stomach, and the man jammed his knee into her back to try to get her to comply.

“The victim was in fear of great bodily harm or death to herself or her unborn child,” according to affidavits filed Tuesday in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge.

The affidavits, filed by Oak Ridge Police Department Investigator A. Marvell Moore, said the victim is seven months pregnant.

After the alleged home invasion robbery, the suspect, Jordan Lamar Young, 31, of Tuskegee Drive, fled the apartment with the pregnant woman’s prescription medication and $301 in cash, the affidavits said. [Read more…]

Authorities investigate car crash in creek in Roane County

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.ROANE COUNTY–Authorities are investigating a car crash in a creek alongside Poplar Creek Road in Roane County early Tuesday afternoon.

More information will be added as it becomes available.