Oak Ridge Today

Road conditions still bad, police say; Y-12 closed

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An Oak Ridge Public Works Department snow truck is pictured on South Illinois Avenue on Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 16, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

An Oak Ridge Public Works Department snow truck is pictured on South Illinois Avenue on Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 16, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 11:15 p.m.

Update: Driving conditions on main roads and side streets in Oak Ridge seemed to have improved by about 5 p.m. Wednesday, although there were still patches of ice and snow, including in shopping center parking lots.

Wednesday evening, the Oak Ridge Police Department said conditions had improved on main roads, but side streets were still extremely slick. Drivers should use extra caution if they have to get out tonight. There could be some refreezing on the roads overnight with the low temperatures. Oak Ridge Schools will be closed again on Thursday, January 18, due to the conditions.

A few inches of snow fell Tuesday, and road conditions are still bad Wednesday morning, especially in the city’s neighborhoods, the Oak Ridge Police Department said. The Y-12 National Security Complex and the Uranium Processing Facility offices are closed.

Oak Ridge Public Works Department crews are out clearing and treating the roads.

“If you must go out, please use extreme caution,” the ORPD said.

Y-12 said normal operations will resume Thursday, January 18. [Read more…]

Two charged in Claxton shooting, one with attempted murder

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Jacob Lynn Rutherford

Jacob Lynn Rutherford

 

CLAXTON—Two people have been charged in the shooting on Clinton Highway in Claxton on Saturday, and one of them faces charges of attempted murder, authorities said.

Jacob Lynn Rutherford, 23, of Oak Ridge, has been charged with three counts of attempted murder, said Mark Lucas, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department chief deputy. Rutherford is in the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton pending bond that will be set at arraignment, Lucas said.

His girlfriend, Maggie Taylor Atteberry, 24, of Clinton, was charged with being an accessory after the fact, and she has been released on bond, Lucas said.

Deputies had responded to a report of a person shot at the Bread Box on Edgemoor Road on Saturday evening when they found Nathan Lynn Phillips, 36, of Clinton, with gunshot wounds. Another person was driving him to the hospital, but they had stopped at the store to call for an ambulance, Lucas said. Phillips was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville by Anderson County EMS. Phillips’ wounds were more serious than originally thought, and he remains in the hospital, Lucas said. [Read more…]

Investigators questioning suspect, girlfriend in Claxton shooting

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The Anderson County Sheriff's Department investigates a shooting at 3008 Clinton Highway, at the intersection of Clinton Highway and Lonesome Dove Road in Claxton, on Saturday evening, Jan. 13, 2018. Two were reported to have non-life threatening injuries. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department investigates a shooting at 3008 Clinton Highway, at the intersection of Clinton Highway and Lonesome Dove Road in Claxton, on Saturday evening, Jan. 13, 2018. Two were reported to have non-life threatening injuries. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

CLAXTON—Investigators are questioning a suspect and his girlfriend in the shooting that injured two people on Clinton Highway on Saturday, authorities said.

The two are believed to be involved in the shooting, and they were taken into custody without incident at a relative’s mobile home, said Mark Lucas, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department chief deputy

“Investigators will be questioning them concerning the shooting incident,” Lucas said Saturday night.

He said the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department will not release any names until investigators determine their involvement and what charges will be filed. [Read more…]

Updated: Two injured in Claxton shooting

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The Anderson County Sheriff's Department investigates a shooting at 3008 Clinton Highway, at the intersection of Clinton Highway and Lonesome Dove Road in Claxton, on Saturday evening, Jan. 13, 2018. Two were reported to have non-life threatening injuries. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department investigates a shooting at 3008 Clinton Highway, at the intersection of Clinton Highway and Lonesome Dove Road in Claxton, on Saturday evening, Jan. 13, 2018. Two people were reported to have non-life threatening injuries. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 2:20 p.m. Jan. 14.

CLAXTON—Two people were shot at a home in Claxton on Saturday, and they both appear to have non-life threatening injuries, authorities said.

The shooting was reported at about 5:24 p.m. Saturday. One of the victims was at the BreadBox Market on Edgemoor Road in Claxton, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said.

When they arrived at the BreadBox, deputies learned the shooting had taken place at a home on Clinton Highway, Lucas said. When deputies went to that house at 3008 Clinton Highway, they found a second person who had been shot, Lucas said. [Read more…]

Death-penalty defendant to be taken to psychiatric hospital

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Valerie Stenson

Valerie Stenson

 

The Oak Ridge grandmother facing the death penalty in a first-degree murder case will be taken to a psychiatric hospital where her competency and mental health can be evaluated, according to Anderson County court records.

The defendant, Valerie Stenson, 53, is currently being held at the Tennessee Prison for Women in Nashville. She will be taken to Moccasin Bend Psychiatric Hospital in Chattanooga for an intake scheduled for 1:30 p.m. January 17, according to an order filed in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Wednesday, January 3.

A two-week trial for Stenson had been scheduled for December 2017, but it was canceled and a mental health evaluation was ordered. It’s not clear if or when the trial will be rescheduled.

Court orders filed in August and October called for a psychiatric evaluation of Stenson and a referral to Moccasin Bend, where experts can determine her competency to stand trial and her mental condition at the time of the crime (the insanity defense). [Read more…]

Fire destroys Briceville house

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A fire destroyed a home on Andy’s Ridge Road between Briceville and Rocky Top on Friday evening, authorities said.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Department deputies responded to the call at about 6:51 p.m. Friday.

When Deputy Gregory Hoyt Stanley arrived, he found the house fully engulfed in flames, according to an Anderson County Sheriff’s Department incident report. The Briceville Volunteer Fire Department was already there trying to extinguish the blaze.

The resident of the home told deputies that he had been across the street at his mother’s house for a few minutes when he realized that his house was on fire, according to the incident report. [Read more…]

ORPD: Roads slippery, crashes reported, Key Springs closed

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Slow down, and use caution, the Oak Ridge Police Department said Monday morning, Jan. 8, 2018. "Roads are very slick. Stay home if you don’t need to be out." Several crashes have already been reported this morning, and Key Springs Road, which goes down into Marlow, has been closed. (Photo courtesy ORPD)

Slow down, and use caution, the Oak Ridge Police Department said Monday morning, Jan. 8, 2018. “Roads are very slick. Stay home if you don’t need to be out.” Several crashes have already been reported this morning, and Key Springs Road, which goes down into Marlow, has been closed. (Photo courtesy ORPD)

 

Roads are slippery, several crashes have been reported, and Key Springs Road, which goes down into Marlow, has been closed, the Oak Ridge Police Department said Monday morning.

“Roads are very slick in Oak Ridge,” the ORPD said. “If you must drive, slow down and use caution! Stay home if you don’t need to be out.”

The icy conditions had led school systems to close—including in Oak Ridge, Anderson County, Clinton, and Roane County—and some organization opened late, including the City of Oak Ridge and Roane County Courthouse. The Anderson County Courthouse is closed, and so is Roane State Community College. [Read more…]

City reports 20 water line breaks in four days

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A break in a 10-inch water line was reported about 10 feet under Tyler Road at about noon Friday, Jan. 5, 2018. A second crew was expected to provide relief to the first crew at about 10 p.m. Friday. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A break in a 10-inch water line was reported about 10 feet under Tyler Road at about noon Friday, Jan. 5, 2018. A second crew was expected to provide relief to the first crew making repairs at about 10 p.m. Friday. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 1 a.m.

The City of Oak Ridge reported about 20 water main breaks in four days of below-freezing temperatures, and crews were working to repair one 10-inch water line about 10 feet below Tyler Road near Oak Ridge Turnpike on Friday night.

The City of Oak Ridge said the Oak Ridge Public Works Department has been working around the clock in cold temperatures to repair broken water mains and restore service.

The water line break under Tyler Road was reported at about noon Friday. City workers turned off nine valves between that break and Central Avenue and Tennessee Avenue, but water continued to flow. Workers weren’t able to completely close one valve after it broke, and they were waiting for a second crew to relieve them at about 10 p.m. Friday. In the meantime, a short section of Tyler Road remained closed at Oak Ridge Turnpike, and it wasn’t clear how long it would take to repair the water line. [Read more…]

ORPD: Missing teen is safe, back with family

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The teenager who was last seen at her home on Halloween is safe and back with her family, the Oak Ridge Police Department said Friday.

On Thursday, the Oak Ridge Police Department posted on Twitter that the search remained active for Shayla Cook, 16, of Oak Ridge.

On Friday morning, the ORPD said Cook came to the Police Department overnight, and she is now back with her family.

“Thank you to everyone who called and helped in this search,” the ORPD said.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

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Man escapes, home destroyed by fire

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A man escaped with minor injuries, but a home was destroyed in a fire on Friday morning, Jan. 5, 2018, on Lindale Lane in west Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A man escaped with minor injuries, but a home was destroyed in a fire on Friday morning, Jan. 5, 2018, on Lindale Lane in west Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A man escaped with minor injuries, but a home was destroyed in a Friday morning fire on Lindale Lane in west Oak Ridge.

The fire was reported at about 6:30 a.m. Friday at 15 Lindale Lane, which is off West Lincoln Road just north of the Dollar General store.

The fire was reported to have started in the basement, where there is a garage in a corner of the house. The cause was unknown, Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley said Friday morning.

The fire was fueled by natural gas, Kerley said. A gas line comes into the house in that area, and there is a water heater next to the gas line in the garage, he said.

The fire burned up a wall on that side of the house, went into the attic, and set the attic on fire, Kerley said. [Read more…]

ORPD asks for help finding missing teen

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Image by Oak Ridge Police Department

Image by Oak Ridge Police Department

 

The Oak Ridge Police Department is asking for the public’s help in finding a missing teenager.

Shayla Cook, 16, of Oak Ridge, was last seen at her home on the evening of October 31, 2017, the Oak Ridge Police Department said.

She was reported missing the following day by a family member who believes Shayla left on her own and may be with a non-custodial parent, the ORPD said. [Read more…]

Two escape, not injured in Marlow fire

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Two people escaped and did not need medical treatment during a Monday night fire in Marlow, authorities said.

The fire was reported at 8:10 p.m. Monday in an occupied mobile home at 113 Melissa Lane in Ben’s Home Center in Marlow, said Stephanie Fox, chief of the Marlow Volunteer Fire Department.

It was a fully involved structure fire, Fox said. Firefighters used defensive firefighting measures, staying outside the structure and trying to prevent the fire from spreading.

The fire spread to a vehicle at the residence, which was near other mobile homes, and firefighters kept the blaze from spreading to another nearby mobile home, Fox said. [Read more…]