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For members: Man sentenced to 20 years for attempted murder

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McKinley Earl McGee, 51, of Oak Ridge, who is pictured above at right, was sentenced to the maximum 20 years in prison in Anderson County Criminal Court on Monday, Sept. 9, 2019, for an attempted murder during a stabbing last year that injured a woman so severely that she would have died if she hadn’t received medical treatment, a judge and prosecutor said. At left is defense attorney Curtis Isabell. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

CLINTON—An Oak Ridge man who has at least 15 criminal convictions was sentenced to the maximum 20 years in prison on Monday for an attempted murder during a stabbing last year that injured a woman so severely that she would have died if she hadn’t received medical treatment, a judge and prosecutor said.

Before he was sentenced Monday, McKinley Earl McGee, 51, had been convicted after a one-day trial in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton in July. At the end of that trial, the 12-person jury deliberated for about one hour before finding McGee guilty of attempted second-degree murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and aggravated assault that resulted in serious bodily injury.

 
Curtis-Isabell-McKinley-McGee-Sentencing-Sept-9-2019

An Oak Ridge man who has at least 15 prior criminal convictions was sentenced to the maximum 20 years in prison on Monday for an attempted murder during a stabbing last year that injured a women so severely that she would have died if she hadn’t received medical treatment, a judge and prosecutor said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

CLINTON—An Oak Ridge man who has at least 15 prior criminal convictions was sentenced to the maximum 20 years in prison on Monday for an attempted murder during a stabbing last year that injured a women so severely that she would have died if she hadn’t received medical treatment, a judge and prosecutor said.

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Rocky Top woman allegedly started fire at home with children inside

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Sharon Lee Braden
Sharon Lee Braden

A Rocky Top woman allegedly started a fire at a home north of Clinton with an adult and two children inside in June, and she was arrested Monday, authorities said.

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Office said Sharon Lee Braden, 48, of Rocky Top, was arrested on charges of aggravated arson, three counts of aggravated assault, and reckless endangerment. Those charges are related to a June fire at a home on Offutt Road, which is east of Lake City Highway (Highway 25/State Route 9) between Clinton and Rocky Top.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Office Detective Sean Flynn issued arrest warrants as a result of evidence collected during his investigation and statements made by an eyewitness, a press release said.

“The witness reported that he saw Braden start the fire, and when he approached her, she fled,” the press release said.

[Read more…]

For members: Judge finds probable cause in attempted murder of deputy

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Charles Mason Preliminary Hearing July 25 2019
One count of attempted first-degree murder and five aggravated assault charges filed against Charles Edward Mason, 52, of Anderson County, were sent to the grand jury after a preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton on Thursday, July 25, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

CLINTON—One charge of attempted first-degree murder and five counts of aggravated assault, among other charges, were sent to the grand jury after a two-hour preliminary hearing in July for an Anderson County man accused of pointing a revolver at two deputies and pulling the trigger two or three times.

The defendant, Charles Edward Mason, 52, had faced 24 charges, including two counts of attempted first-degree murder, eight counts of aggravated assault, three counts of aggravated kidnapping, and weapons and drug charges, among other violations. Eleven charges were sent to the grand jury, although it is possible that the grand jury could consider the charges that have been dismissed.

Charles Mason Preliminary Hearing July 25 2019

One count of attempted first-degree murder and five aggravated assault charges filed against Charles Edward Mason, 52, of Anderson County, were sent to the grand jury after a preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton on Thursday, July 25, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

CLINTON—One charge of attempted first-degree murder and five counts of aggravated assault, among other charges, were sent to the grand jury after a two-hour preliminary hearing in July for an Anderson County man accused of pointing a revolver at two deputies and pulling the trigger two or three times.

The defendant, Charles Edward Mason, 52, had faced 24 charges, including two counts of attempted first-degree murder, eight counts of aggravated assault, three counts of aggravated kidnapping, and weapons and drug charges, among other violations. Eleven charges were sent to the grand jury, although it is possible that the grand jury could consider the charges that have been dismissed.

Mason, who unsuccessfully sought to represent himself during the hearing, has a violent crime history. He has previously pleaded guilty to two homicides, one in Knox County, Kentucky, in 1994 and the other in Anderson County, Tennessee, in 2010.

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For members: Man sentenced to 8 months after fight with officers

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A man who fought with Oak Ridge police officers, injuring five of them, pleaded guilty last week to five counts of aggravated assault on an officer, and he was sentenced to serve eight months in the Anderson County jail, according to court records.

Thurman B. Bates

Thurman B. Bates, 40, pleaded guilty to the five counts in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge on Thursday, July 11. He was ordered to serve the eight-month sentence with his release eligibility set at 75 percent of his sentence and with credit for time served. Bates has been jailed at the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton since January 6, or more than six months.

Oak Ridge Police Department Badge

A man who fought with Oak Ridge police officers, injuring five of them, pleaded guilty last week to five counts of aggravated assault on an officer, and he was sentenced to serve eight months in the Anderson County jail, according to court records. 

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Oak Ridge man convicted of attempted murder

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McKinley Earl McGee

An Oak Ridge man who had been accused of stabbing his girlfriend and trying to kill her last year was convicted of attempted murder this week.

McKinley Earl McGee, 50, was convicted after a jury trial that started Tuesday morning in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton. Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark announced the conviction in a press release on Wednesday. The 12-person jury deliberated about 58 minutes before returning with its verdict, Clark said.

McGee was convicted of attempted second-degree murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and aggravated assault with serious bodily injury, Clark said.

McGee was convicted of stabbing and trying to kill Machel Elaine Avery on Utica Circle in Oak Ridge on January 12, 2018, Clark said.

[Read more…]

Clinton man charged with attempted murder

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Terry Lee Crawford

The Clinton man who allegedly shot at two people before one of them, his son, shot back, has been charged with attempted murder, according to court records.

The Anderson County Grand Jury indicted Terry Lee Crawford, 62, on two counts of attempted second-degree murder on June 4. Those charges allege that Crawford tried to kill Joshua Crawford and Ashlee Crawford. The alleged shooting was reported at a home adjacent to Crawford’s on Lee Lane in Clinton on December 26.

Crawford was also charged with two counts of aggravated assault and two counts of reckless endangerment. The aggravated assault charges allege that Crawford caused Joshua and Ashlee Crawford to fear imminent bodily injury because of the gun, and the reckless endangerment charges allege that Terry Crawford engaged in reckless conduct that placed Joshua and Ashlee Crawford in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury through the use of a deadly weapon.

Crawford faces two other charges as well: being a convicted felon who possessed a handgun and vandalism between $1,000 and $2,500. The vandalism charge alleges that Crawford damaged the exterior of Joshua and Ashlee Crawford’s home, causing more than $1,000 in damage.

[Read more…]

For members: Man charged with attempted murder of deputy has two homicide convictions

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Charles Edward Mason

Note: This story was last upated at 7 a.m. May 31.

CLINTON—The Anderson County man charged with attempted murder after allegedly pointing a gun at a deputy and pulling the trigger twice in April has previously pleaded guilty to homicides in Kentucky and Tennessee.

Charles Edward Mason

CLINTON—The Anderson County man charged with attempted murder after allegedly pointing a gun at a deputy and pulling the trigger twice in April has previously pleaded guilty to homicides in Kentucky and Tennessee.

The first homicide conviction was in Knox County, Kentucky, in 1994. The second was in Anderson County, Tennessee, in 2010. The defendant, Charles Edward Mason, now 51, received a nine-year sentence in the first case and a seven-year sentence in the second. He had been accused of shooting a man with a pistol in the first case, the one in Kentucky, according to Knox County court records. He reportedly stabbed a man in the Anderson County case 15 years later.

When he was charged with attempted murder in Anderson County this year, Mason was on probation in a different case involving drug and driver’s license violations. He had pleaded guilty in January to possessing more than 0.5 grams of methamphetamine for resale and driving on a revoked or suspended license. He had received a 10-year sentence, and he had agreed to be declared a habitual motor vehicle offender as well, according to Anderson County court records.

Now, he is facing 24 new charges in Anderson County, including two counts of attempted first-degree murder, eight counts of aggravated assault, three counts of aggravated kidnapping, and three drug charges, among other counts.

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.  Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here. Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here: Basic

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Warrants: Man charged with attempted murder after pointing gun at deputy, pulling trigger

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Charles Edward Mason

An Anderson County man is facing 24 charges, including attempted murder, after he allegedly showed a gun, threatened several people, refused to let two of them call for help, and pointed the weapon at responding deputies and pulled the trigger twice, officers said.

The gun did not fire after Charles Edward Mason, 51, pointed it at a deputy because Mason’s T-shirt got caught in the gun, according to arrest warrants filed in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton by Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Jake Stone.

The charges filed against Mason include:

[Read more…]

(For members) Man sentenced to 35 years in assaults against women

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Jason Bradley Braden

Jason Bradley Braden

Jason Bradley Braden

 

CLINTON—A Clinton man was sentenced to 35 years in prison when he pleaded guilty on Wednesday to attempted second-degree murder, aggravated kidnapping, and aggravated assault in a series of assaults that involved four female victims in three cases.

One of the victims, a grandmother in her 70s, was hit in the face with a crowbar and had a fractured skull and teeth knocked out, according to facts cited in Anderson County Criminal Court during the plea agreement hearing in Clinton on Wednesday.

The defendant, Jason Bradley Braden, 30, was ordered to serve 100 percent of his 35-year sentence.

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. 

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Tennessee Supreme Court will not hear Cromwell’s appeal

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Oak Ridge resident Lee Harold Cromwell, 68, was sentenced to 25 years in prison on 28 counts of forgery and filling fraudulent liens during a hearing in Nashville criminal court on Wednesday, June 27, 2018. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Tennessee Supreme Court will not hear an appeal of a criminal case filed against Lee Harold Cromwell, who is now 69 and was convicted of reckless vehicular homicide in Anderson County Criminal Court two years ago after a fatal crash after fireworks in Oak Ridge in 2015. Cromwell is pictured above during a hearing in a Nashville criminal court on Wednesday, June 27, 2018, when he was sentenced to 25 years in prison in a separate case involving 28 counts of forgery and filling fraudulent liens. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Tennessee Supreme Court will not hear an appeal of the criminal case filed against Lee Harold Cromwell, who was convicted of homicide after a fatal crash after fireworks in Oak Ridge in 2015.

Cromwell, who is now 69, had been convicted of reckless vehicular homicide and aggravated assault in Anderson County Criminal Court at the end of a three-day trial in February 2017.

But in July 2018, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals in Knoxville said Cromwell is eligible for a new trial on the aggravated assault charges. The court cited misleading and confusing jury instructions. The aggravated assault convictions, which were reversed by the appeals court, had helped to add seven years to Cromwell’s sentence.

The court upheld Cromwell’s one conviction of reckless vehicular homicide and his five-year sentence on that charge.

In August, Cromwell appealed to the Tennessee Supreme Court. [Read more…]

Affidavit: Clinton man shot at two people before being shot

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Terry Lee Crawford

Terry Lee Crawford

 

Note: This story was updated at 3:20 p.m.

The man shot in Clinton last week had first shot at two people before one of them, his son, shot back, according to police and an arrest warrant filed last week.

The warrant includes an affidavit, which is a brief description of an alleged crime. It alleged that Terry Lee Crawford, 61, who was arrested Monday, had shot at Joshua and Ashlee Crawford before Joshua Crawford shot back.

The shooting last week was reported at about 4:42 p.m. Wednesday, December 26, near the intersection of Lee Lane and State Route 61, which connects Oak Ridge and Clinton. Lee Lane is near a gas station and convenience store and the entrance to the Mariner Point residential subdivision.

At the time of the shooting, according to the affidavit, Joshua and Ashlee Crawford were in their house on Lee Lane when they heard gun shots, which sounded very close to their home. [Read more…]

Records: Man shot last week has history of family disputes

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A 61-year-old Clinton man was injured in a shooting on Lee Lane on Wednesday afternoon, Dec. 26, 2018, police said, after he reportedly came on to his son’s property with a loaded gun and fired several shots toward the house, reportedly over the positioning of a floodlight. The son exited his home and returned fire, striking his father once in the buttocks, police said. Police found the man on the ground in front of his home, pictured above. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A 61-year-old Clinton man was injured in a shooting on Lee Lane on Wednesday afternoon, Dec. 26, 2018, police said, after he reportedly came on to his son’s property with a loaded gun and fired several shots toward the house, reportedly over the positioning of a floodlight. The son exited his home and returned fire, striking his father once in the buttocks, police said. Police found the man on the ground in front of his home, pictured above. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A 61-year-old Clinton man was injured in a shooting on Lee Lane on Wednesday afternoon, Dec. 26, 2018, police said, after he reportedly came on to his son’s property with a loaded gun and fired several shots toward the house, reportedly over the positioning of a floodlight. The son exited his home and returned fire, striking his father once in the buttocks, police said. Police found the man on the ground in front of his home, pictured above. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Clinton man who was shot during a dispute with his son last week, reportedly over the positioning of a floodlight, has had other disputes with family members, including another one involving a firearm, according to Anderson County court records.

In one of the previous cases, the man who was shot, Terry Lee Crawford, 61, allegedly vandalized his sister’s house with a tractor in October, also because of a floodlight, the court records said. That case is pending in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton.

Before the alleged vandalism this year, Crawford had pleaded guilty to an assault against his sister and another victim in 2015—that case involved a firearm—and to an attempted assault against his son in 2016.

The incidents have involved three homes plus Crawford’s, all on Lee Lane in west Clinton, court records said.

Besides those cases, there is an indictment pending against Crawford for driving under the influence, reckless endangerment, and reckless driving.

It’s not clear what charges might be filed after last week’s shooting. Crawford was taken to the hospital after the shooting. He was booked into the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton on Monday. But affidavits, which include specific charges and brief descriptions of alleged crimes, were not available on Tuesday.

On Thursday, the day after the shooting, the district attorney general’s office called Crawford a “danger to society” and asked that his bond be revoked or increased in two of the previous cases. The motion appears to have been successful, at least for now; Crawford’s bond has been set at $1.7 million, an unusually large bond, and he remained in custody on Tuesday night, according to Anderson County jail records.

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