Oak Ridge Today

Roane authorities arrest two after armed robbery investigation

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Mark Andrew Randolph

Mark Andrew Randolph

Rufena Jean Bunch

Rufena Jean Bunch

Roane County authorities investigating an armed robbery at a gas station on Highway 70 on Friday arrested a Harriman man and Kingston woman on Monday, Sheriff Jack Stockton said.

The alleged robbery occurred at a Rocky Top Market on Bluff Road at Highway 70 at closing time Friday. A white man wearing camouflage clothing entered the store, pointed a handgun at the clerks, and demanded money, Stockton said in a press release. The suspect allegedly left the store with an undetermined amount of money.

On Monday, Roane County Sheriff’s Office deputies, with help from detectives Bryan Walker and Brandon Kittrell, arrested the two suspects without incident, the release said. The Crossville and Kingston police departments also helped. [Read more…]

Police search finds missing Clinton man at Clark Center Park

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Note: This story was updated at 11:47 p.m.

A police search on Monday evening located a missing 79-year-old Clinton man whose personal items including keys and identification, as well as a small amount of blood, had been found at Clark Center Park in Oak Ridge, authorities said.

The man, whom police have not identified, was found lying off an embankment near the edge of the roadway about 200 yards from where his personal property had been found on Bull Bluff Road, the Oak Ridge Police Department said in a Monday evening statement. He was partially clothed and disoriented due to an unknown medical condition.

The man was transported by ambulance to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville to be treated for a head injury, the ORPD said in the statement from Lt. Robin Smith. [Read more…]

Domestic violence down; most victims female, TBI says

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Reports of domestic violence fell 3.4 percent during a three-year period from 2010 to 2012 in Tennessee, state authorities said.

Nearly 72 percent of the victims were female in cases where the gender of the victims were known, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said in a recently released study.

The TBI analyzed the state’s domestic violence crime data as reported by law enforcement agencies through the Tennessee Incident Based Reporting System, or TIBRS, program. The data showed a 0.4 percent drop in domestic violence reports from 2010 to 2011 and a 2.9 percent decrease from 2011 to 2012. [Read more…]

ORFD open house includes fire demonstration

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Oak Ridge Fire Department Burn Cell

A burn cell flashes over during an Oak Ridge Fire Department open house on Thursday. (Submitted photo)

A Thursday evening open house at Fire Station No. 3 in Oak Ridge included a live fire demonstration of a typical living room fire, which allowed those who attended to watch a fire progress from start to “flashover” at 1,150 degrees.

The burn cells constructed for these type of demonstrations are located at Fire Station No. 3 and were built under a partnership agreement with the University of Tennessee’s National Forensic Academy and the Oak Ridge Fire Department as a teaching tool for fire development studies. The live fire demonstration allowed attendees to see firsthand how quickly a fire develops and the tremendous amount of heat released from a burning sofa and chair. The live fire demonstration illustrated the need for smoke alarms and exit drills to save lives when every second counts, a press release said. [Read more…]

Clinton receives $112,000 hiring grant for community policing

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Clinton has received a hiring grant valued at about $112,000 for community policing.

It was one of three awards announced Friday in the Eastern District of Tennessee by U.S. Attorney William C. Killian in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, or COPS.

[Read more…]

Man breaks into car of police chief’s wife, arrested

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James T. Akagi

James T. Akagi

Information from WYSH Radio

A 20-year-old man remains behind bars after he allegedly broke into the wrong car Friday night in Oak Ridge.

Late Friday night, Oak Ridge Police Department Chief James Akagi was at home when he heard his dog barking and went to investigate. He found several items from his wife’s unlocked car in his driveway and spotted an unfamiliar vehicle parked nearby. [Read more…]

ORFD launches home escape plan announcement tonight, public invited

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Darryl Kerley

Darryl Kerley

The Oak Ridge Fire Department will host a community viewing of a new public service announcement on home escape plans at 6:30 p.m. today (Thursday).

The announcement is titled “Be Prepared: Home escape plans save lives!” The public viewing at Fire Station No. 3 is open to everyone, and it’s supported by the State Fire Marshal’s Office.

“This program is going to give the fire service the opportunity to show how important having a home escape plan is and how the plan can be implemented by people of all ages,” ORFD Chief Darryl Kerley said. [Read more…]

Sheriff’s Department receives Governor’s Highway Safety Grant for fifth year

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Sheriff Paul White announced Tuesday that the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department has been awarded a traffic safety grant for the fifth year.

The grant award of $40,000 from the Governor’s Highway Safety Office will support the traffic safety program “Reducing Fatalities In Anderson County,” a press release said. The grant will increase efforts to reduce fatalities through enforcement of laws governing driving under the influence and impaired driving, as well as seatbelt enforcement. [Read more…]

Fire destroys car, damages house in Briceville

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Information from WYSH Radio

A car was destroyed and the house it was parked next to was damaged early Monday when it caught fire in Briceville.

The incident happened shortly after midnight Monday at a house on Seiber Mountain Lane. Firefighters from the Briceville and Medford Fire Departments responded and put out the fire, which started in a Pontiac Grand Prix, and spread to the nearby house, which was burned through the siding and into the attic, according to the report. [Read more…]

Police: Two bicyclists injured after running stop signs, hitting vehicles

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Two bicyclists, including a child, collided with vehicles after running stop signs in two separate incidents this weekend, and one of the riders was flown by medical helicopter to a Knoxville hospital, authorities said.

The first collision occurred at about 5 p.m. Saturday when Thomas M. Trosper, 44, of Oak Ridge, ran a stop sign on Latimer Road and struck the right front side of a 1995 Dodge van driven westbound on North Jefferson Circle, a crash report said. [Read more…]

Vehicle strikes two cars, house before fleeing, police say

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An unknown driver in an unknown vehicle hit two parked cars on Outer Drive early Saturday morning, sideswiped a tree, and struck a house before fleeing, authorities said.

The crash at about 1:40 a.m. Saturday just east of Florida Avenue damaged the foundation of a home at 97 Outer Drive, Oak Ridge Police Department Officer Daniel Freytag said in a report. [Read more…]

ORPD identifies motorcyclist who died in fiery Highway 95 crash

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The Oak Ridge Police Department has identified the motorcyclist who died in a fiery three-vehicle crash on Highway 95 on Sunday.

Jeffrey Floyd, 23, of Clinton, was killed when the motorcycle he was riding collided with a vehicle driven by Patricia Scofield, 57, of Louisville at about 5 p.m. Sunday, the ORPD said in a press release. Both vehicles were almost completely engulfed in flames when officers arrived. [Read more…]