Oak Ridge Today

TBI investigating officer-involved shooting in Clinton

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The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation responded to a shooting involving an officer on East Drive in Clinton, the TBI said late Wednesday night, Nov. 8, 2017.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation responded to a shooting involving an officer on East Drive in Clinton, the TBI said late Wednesday night, Nov. 8, 2017.

 

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation responded to a shooting involving an officer on East Drive in Clinton, the TBI said late Wednesday night.

The TBI said agents had responded to the shooting before midnight Wednesday.

TBI spokesperson Leslie Earhart said a statement would be posted later this morning on Twitter and .

East Drive is near the intersection of State Route 61 (North Charles J. Seivers Boulevard) and J.D. Yarnell Industrial Parkway in Clinton. [Read more…]

Anderson County Sheriff’s Department helping churches with safety, security

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Anderson County Sheriff's Department Church Safety Security Seminar

After yesterday’s tragedy at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department said it offers its sympathy and prayers for the families of the victims, and prayers for the recovery of the survivors.

“Every house of worship, no matter how large or small, and no matter the location, must prepare for this type of attack,” a press release said. “For the last several years, we have sponsored Church Safety & Security seminars for area worship centers. Our Church Safety & Security Seminar presents up-to-date information to assist congregations in church safety and will assist those that are just beginning to prepare or those seeking to improve readiness. [Read more…]

Man pleads guilty to homicide in fatal crash

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Justin Lee Seeber

Justin Lee Seeber

 

An Anderson County man pleaded guilty on Monday to criminally negligent homicide in the death of a 19-year-old woman in a single-vehicle crash on US 25W in May 2013.

Justin Lee Seeber, 28, also pleaded guilty in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton to reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon.

The crash on May 28, 2013, killed Amber Elaine Smith of Knoxville, a graduate of Hardin Valley Academy who attended Roane State Community College.

Seeber’s two-year sentence was suspended, and he was placed on state-supervised probation. As a standard offender, his release eligibility was set at 30 percent. If he successfully completes probation, he will not have to go to prison. But if he violates probation, he will have to serve prison time, authorities said. [Read more…]

Grandmother’s murder trial has been canceled, mental health evaluation ordered

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Valerie Stenson

Valerie Stenson

 

CLINTON—Scheduled for December, the murder trial of an Oak Ridge grandmother who is facing the death penalty has been canceled, and a mental health evaluation has been ordered.

On Thursday, Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark in Clinton said he’s not sure if or when the trial for Valerie Stenson, 53, will be rescheduled, and he can’t address why the two-week trial in December has been canceled.

Some of the most recent court documents filed in the case relate to a psychiatric evaluation for Stenson. It’s not clear if that evaluation is related to the cancellation of the trial, which has been rescheduled before, but it does seem that it would be difficult to conduct the evaluation, which could last up to 30 days, before the trial in December.

A status hearing was scheduled for Stenson in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Monday, and subpoenas filed on Tuesday said the trial is off. It had been scheduled for December 4-8 and from December 11-15.

An August 14 order for a psychiatric evaluation that was filed by Anderson County Criminal Court Judge Don Elledge said Stenson was previously evaluated by State of Tennessee experts and determined to be competent to stand trial and to help with her defense. [Read more…]

Oliver Springs man killed in crash on Marlow Road

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An Oliver Springs man died in a head-on collision on Marlow Road on Tuesday night, authorities said.

The crash was reported at about 10:19 p.m. Tuesday, according to a Tennessee Highway Patrol fatality report.

The THP report said Brian E. Hooks, 33, of Oliver Springs was driving east on Marlow Road in a 1992 Nissan four-door when he crossed the center line, entered the westbound lane, and collided head-on with a 1993 Chevrolet four-door driven by Ryan J. Maston, 26, of Clinton.

The crash was investigated by THP Sergeant Scott Hines. [Read more…]

Part of Nebraska Ave. to be closed Tuesday for ‘Halloween House’

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MAP Nebraska Ave Temporary Road Closure Oct 31 2017

A temporary road closure is planned along part of Nebraska Avenue on Tuesday, October 31 (Halloween), between 6 and 10 p.m. for the “Halloween House.”

The closure was approved by the city in order to create a safe environment for drivers and pedestrians attending the annual “Halloween House” event, a press release said. That’s based on the large turnout of visitors last year.

A small portion of the 100 block of Nebraska Avenue, between Newridge Road and Newhaven Road, will be affected, the press release said. [Read more…]

No injuries reported when fire destroys vacant home

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A fire destroyed a vacant home on South Walker Lane on Thursday night, Oct. 19, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A fire destroyed a vacant home on South Walker Lane on Thursday night, Oct. 19, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

No injuries were reported when a fire destroyed a vacant home on Thursday night, authorities said.

The fire was reported at 112 South Walker Lane at about 11:40 p.m. Thursday.

More than a dozen personnel from the Oak Ridge Fire Department responded, and they were able to get the fire under control within about 10 minutes, the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release. No injuries were reported. [Read more…]

Woman pleads guilty in fatal car-pedestrian crash on Clinton Highway

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Destany Lynn Cotner

Destany Lynn Cotner

 

A Clinton woman has pleaded guilty in a fatal car-pedestrian hit-and-run crash on Clinton Highway in March.

Destany Lynn Cotner, 25, pleaded guilty in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Friday to two charges of leaving the scene of an accident involving death and driving under the influence (first offense).

As part of the plea agreement, two other charges were dismissed. Those charges were driving with a suspended or revoked license (first offense) and possession of contraband in a penal facility.

It was a plea by information, meaning Cotner had not yet been indicted by the Anderson County Grand Jury.

Cotner initially told the Tennessee Highway Patrol that she was the driver the night of the crash, but she later changed her story to say her co-defendant Isaac Irwin, 26, also of Clinton, was the driver, according to a narrative filed in the case and attached to warrants.

Cotner received a two-year prison sentence on the conviction of leaving the scene of an accident involving death. As a standard offender, her release eligibility is 30 percent. Her sentence on this felony conviction was suspended, and she will be placed on supervised probation. [Read more…]

TBI: Clinton man indicted, accused of threatening three judges

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Ronald Taylor

Ronald Taylor

A Clinton man indicted by a grand jury this week is accused of threatening three judges, authorities said.

The indictment was announced Friday by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. An investigation by TBI special agents led to the indictment, a press release said.

The investigation started in November 2016 at the request of Seventh District Attorney General Dave Clark, the TBI said.

“TBI special agents began investigating threats made against three Anderson County judges,” the press release said. “The investigation revealed that Ronald Jennings Taylor, 52, wrote letters and mailed them to numerous individuals. In the letters, Taylor threatened to harm the judges.” [Read more…]

Oak Ridge’s 75th anniversary: Fire prevention celebration includes parade Saturday

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Map courtesy City of Oak Ridge

Map courtesy City of Oak Ridge

 

A fire prevention celebration on Saturday will include a parade as part of Oak Ridge’s 75th anniversary celebration.

The celebration will kick off with a “Then and Now”-themed parade that will start at Oak Ridge Fire Department Fire Station Number 3 on Tuskegee Drive and end at Alvin K. Bissell Park. Lineup for participants begins at 9 a.m., with the parade getting underway at 10 a.m.

The city that is now Oak Ridge was built as part of the Manhattan Project, a top-secret federal program to build the world’s first atomic weapons during World War II. Among other things, uranium enriched at Y-12 fueled the first atomic bomb used in wartime. Code-named “Little Boy,” it was dropped over Hiroshima, Japan, on August 6, 1945, shortly before the end of the war. [Read more…]

Updated: Homicide charge in drug-related fatality could be a first in Anderson County

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Troy Andrew Venable

Troy Andrew Venable

 

This story was last updated at 5:30 p.m.

The reckless homicide charge filed against an Oak Ridge man in a grand jury indictment after a drug-related fatality could be a first in Anderson County, a law enforcement official said.

Troy Andrew Venable, 29, was indicted in April on a reckless homicide charge in the death of Lauren Alexandra Fritts, 26.

Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark said it is, as far as he knows, the first time in Anderson County that someone has been indicted on a homicide charge in a drug-related fatality. [Read more…]

Shooting victim in serious condition at UT Medical Center

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William Molette

William Molette

The woman who was shot on Walsh Lane on Friday night, possibly five times around her torso, is in serious condition at the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, a spokesperson said Tuesday afternoon.

The shooting at 104 Walsh Lane was reported at about 11 p.m. Friday. It started with a grudge over a puppy, according to affidavits filed Tuesday in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge.

William Antwon Molette, 43, has been charged with attempted first-degree murder in the case. He tried to incapacitate or kill the victim, Kathy Griffin, by pointing a small, black .380 caliber Ruger LCP at Griffin and firing numerous times, until the magazine was empty, “with the sole intent of killing the victim,” according to the court affidavits, which were filed by Oak Ridge Police Department Detective A. Marvell Moore. The facts as alleged in the affidavits were based on witness statements and officer statements and observations, Moore said.

Griffin had life-threatening injuries because of the shooting, and she had to be airlifted to the University of Tennessee Medical Trauma Center in Knoxville, Moore said.

“Medical personnel observed multiple (five) defects to or about the victim’s torso that were believed to have been created by high-velocity projectiles,” Moore said. [Read more…]