Police and Fire Archives - Page 37 of 208

Three charged with financial exploitation, theft of more than $60,000

Posted at 12:30 am July 23, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Johnnie Shane Munsey

An Andersonville man and two Andersonville women have been charged with financial exploitation of an elderly or vulnerable person and theft of more than $60,000, according to Anderson County court records.

The three are Johnnie Shane Munsey, 46; Phyllis Joan Spradling, 71; and Tammie Jo Munsey, 42. They were indicted by the Anderson County Grand Jury in Clinton on July 10. The two exploitation and theft charges are both Class B felonies.

The three defendants, who all live at the same address in Andersonville, are accused of financially exploiting an elderly or vulnerable adult between December 30, 2015, through November 1, 2017, the court records said.

And they are accused of obtaining property, including but not limited to U.S. currency valued at more than $60,000, from the victim, Jimmy Spradling, without his consent, the indictments said. [Read more…]

Updated: State won’t prosecute three misdemeanors in fatal car-motorcycle crash

Posted at 11:16 pm July 22, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Noelle Leigh Patty

Note: This story was updated at 4 p.m. July 25.

The state will not prosecute three misdemeanor charges that had been filed against an Oak Ridge woman after a fatal car-motorcycle crash more than two years ago, but prosecutors will proceed to trial on two felony charges: criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment.

The trial has been scheduled for Tuesday for Noelle Leigh Patty, 41, in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton. Patty has been charged with homicide in the death of motorcyclist Rufus E. Shephard III, 44, of Oak Ridge.

The court was notified of the state’s decision not to prosecute the three misdemeanor charges last week, and a judgement was filed Tuesday, July 17. The three misdemeanor charges are failure to yield the right of way resulting in death, failure to obey a traffic control device, and failure to provide evidence of insurance.

“The state has elected to go to trial only on the felony charges in Count 1 and 5,” said the state’s notice, filed last week by Seventh Judicial District Assistant District Attorney General Emily Faye Abbott. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge police chief placed on leave

Posted at 10:55 pm July 19, 2018
By John Huotari 42 Comments

Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi

Note: This story was updated at 12:35 a.m.

Oak Ridge Police Chief James T. Akagi has been placed on administrative leave, and Deputy Chief Robin Smith has taken over daily operations for now, City Manager Mark Watson said Thursday.

Akagi is on leave until Watson can meet with him after returning from a trip to China, the city manager said.

Three anonymous letters were sent in June and July to Watson, Oak Ridge City Council members, other law enforcement officials, and local media outlets. The letters have been reviewed and have been a catalyst for concern, Watson said Thursday.

The letters are not signed, but they said they are from Oak Ridge Police Department employees. One letter said it represented an “overwhelming majority” of ORPD members. Among other things, the letters raised concerns about harassment, a hostile work environment, hostility, retaliation, policy decisions, and turnover. The letters ask for Akagi’s removal or termination, and an investigation by the Tennessee Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission or some other “independent and unbiased agency.” They said conditions have not improved since the 2015 review by the Municipal Technical Advisory Service at the University of Tennessee and have gotten worse instead. [Read more…]

Anderson County inmate charged with escape

Posted at 9:45 pm July 18, 2018
By John Huotari 1 Comment

Damian Vincent Reynolds

A Wartburg man who allegedly walked out of the Anderson County jail after standing in line with other inmates who were being released from the booking area has been arrested and charged with escape.

Damian V. Reynolds, 39, was brought to the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton from Morgan County at about 6:33 p.m. Wednesday, July 11. He was standing in the booking area in his civilian clothes, and several other inmates were being booked out, according to an affidavit filed in Anderson County General Session Court, Division I, in Clinton.

Reynolds stood in line with those other inmates who were being released and proceeded to walk out the jail door without being released, the affidavit said. [Read more…]

TBI investigating inmate death at county jail

Posted at 9:00 pm July 18, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

April Michelle Beach

Information from WYSH Radio

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of an inmate at the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton on July 4.

April Michelle Beach, 36, of Rocky Top was picked up July 2 by an Anderson County Sheriff’s Department deputy for a probation violation and a violation of her pre-trial release and booked into the jail.

On the morning of July 4, according to a source close to the investigation, she became ill and was transported by paramedics to the emergency room, where she was pronounced dead. [Read more…]

Clinton Fire Department gets new ladder truck on Friday

Posted at 8:05 pm July 18, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Clinton Fire Department Tower Truck (Picture via WYSH Radio)

Information from WYSH Radio/Oak Ridge Today

The Clinton Fire Department will possess the largest fire truck in Anderson County on Friday.

Officials recently agreed to purchase a new truck with a ladder capable of reaching heights of 110 feet and will take possession of it on Friday, according to Clinton Fire Chief Archie Brummitt and Assistant Chief Jeff Little.

The new apparatus is thought to be the largest single purchase in the history of the city at $991,000. The funding came from the city’s capital project fund, as well as a $200,000 donation from Clinton manufacturing company SL Tennessee.

The ladder truck has an expected lifespan of 25-30 years, according to Brummitt, who said the tower truck has been on the department’s wish list for some time. [Read more…]

Investigation: Clinton man accused of threatening three judges

Posted at 5:52 pm July 18, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Ronald Jennings Taylor

CLINTON—A Clinton man accused of threatening to harm three Anderson County judges has a trial scheduled this week in Anderson County Criminal Court.

Details about the alleged threat aren’t available in an indictment filed by the Anderson County Grand Jury in October.

The 53-year-old man has had a dispute with Anderson County officials about searches of people at the security checkpoint near the elevators on the third floor of the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton. He has told deputies that they do not have the right to search him, objected to the metal detectors there, claimed that civil rights are being violated, and asserted the right to defend himself with deadly force against an unlawful act by a police officer, according to court records.

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Courts: Trial scheduled in fatal car-motorcycle crash

Posted at 1:08 pm July 14, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Noelle Leigh Patty

CLINTON—A trial has been scheduled this month for an Oak Ridge woman charged with homicide after a fatal car-motorcycle crash on North Illinois Avenue in January 2016.

Noelle Leigh Patty

CLINTON—A trial has been scheduled this month for an Oak Ridge woman charged with homicide after a fatal car-motorcycle crash on North Illinois Avenue in January 2016.

The felony jury trial for Noelle Leigh Patty, 41, is scheduled for July 24 in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton. Patty has been charged with homicide in the death of motorcyclist Rufus E. Shephard III, 44, of Oak Ridge.

On Friday, Anderson County Criminal Court Judge Don Elledge rejected a motion to dismiss two of the five charges filed against Patty: criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment when a deadly weapon is involved. The Anderson County Grand Jury has found probable cause on the five charges, Elledge said, and no facts or evidence had been presented to the court yet. He called the motion to dismiss “totally premature.”

Patty was indicted on the five charges by the Anderson County Grand Jury on August 1, 2017. Besides homicide and reckless endangerment, the charges included failure to yield the right-of-way resulting in death, failure to obey a traffic control device, and failure to provide proof of insurance.

The crash occurred between a Cadillac STS car and Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle on Sunday evening, January 31, 2016, at the western exit of the Westcott Center, the Kroger shopping center. Authorities said Patty, who was driving the Cadillac, made an improper left turn from a right-turn-only lane at that exit, and she failed to yield to Shephard, who was riding the motorcycle north on North Illinois Avenue. Shephard died after he collided with the car, which was turning south in “the pathway of northbound traffic,” Oak Ridge Police Department Officer Chris Luethge said in arrest warrants filed after the crash.

The rest of this story, which you will find only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or recent contributor to Oak Ridge Today. The rest of the story includes information about the “undisputed facts,” results of alcohol and drug tests, and arguments for and against dismissing two of the five charges.

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Exclusive: Two plead guilty in robbery that ends with shooting

Posted at 2:38 pm July 11, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Police Department investigates a shooting on East Holston Lane at about 1 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

CLINTON—An Oak Ridge man and woman pleaded guilty on Monday to their roles in a robbery that started as a drug deal set up through social media and ended with a shooting that injured one person.

The plea agreements for the two defendants, Nicole Marie Brewer, 21, and Nicholas Rashad Strickland, 27, were entered in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Monday. The robbery and shooting were reported on East Holston Lane in Oak Ridge on Tuesday, November 15, 2016.

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Note: Most news stories on Oak Ridge Today are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our advertisers, sponsors, and subscribers. Some are considered premium content. This story is premium content. Premium content can include in-depth, investigative, and exclusive stories.

Two Maryville men accused of pretending to be licensed contractors

Posted at 11:00 am July 11, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Jonathan Presley

Two Maryville men have been indicted after being accused of pretending to be licensed contractors in Anderson County, authorities said.

Before the indictments announced Tuesday, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation had investigated a complaint of contractor fraud involving EPM Handyman Services. The business is owned by Jonathan Presley, 37, and Warren Presley, 45, both of Maryville. The investigation, which started in August 2017, was requested by Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark.

“During the course of the investigation, agents learned the men were paid to build a garage at a location in Anderson County in April 2017 but never completed the job,” the TBI said in a press release Tuesday. “The investigation further revealed that the men were not licensed contractors authorized to conduct this type of business.” [Read more…]

CPD Chief Scarbrough moving to UT’s Law Enforcement Innovation Center

Posted at 3:10 pm July 10, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Rick Scarbrough

Rick Scarbrough is leaving the Clinton Police Department after 16 years as chief. Scarbrough has accepted a position as executive director of the University of Tennessee’s Law Enforcement Innovation Center.

On Tuesday, the City of Clinton said it announced the departure with mixed emotions.

“When I say mixed emotions, I’m excited for the opportunity my friend has, but as city manager, I obviously hate to lose him as our police chief,” Clinton City Manager Roger Houck said in a press release.

Houck said he and Scarbrough have discussed the possibility the chief could be leaving, and they both think Assistant Chief Vaughn Becker is ready for the opportunity.

“We have had a succession plan in place for some time,” Houck said. Becker will become the interim Clinton police chief effective August 1. [Read more…]

Free child car seat checkpoint scheduled for July 14

Posted at 7:55 pm July 6, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

There is a free child passenger seat checkpoint in Oak Ridge on Saturday, May 12, 2018. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

There is a free child passenger seat checkpoint in Oak Ridge on Saturday, July 14, 2018. (File photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)

The Oak Ridge Police Department, Oak Ridge Fire Department, and East Tennessee Children’s Hospital are hosting a child passenger seat checkpoint on Saturday, July 14. It’s free and open to the public.

The checkpoint will be held at Oak Ridge Fire Department Station #2, located at 609 Oak Ridge Turnpike (near Home Depot). Parents and caregivers are invited to stop by anytime between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. with no need to pre-register, a press release said.

During the event, child car seats will be checked for any manufacturer recalls and examined for proper installation by certified technicians, the press release said. Crews will also distribute educational materials about car seats. [Read more…]

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