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For members: Mason found guilty of federal gun, drug charges

Posted at 5:36 pm January 20, 2020
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Charles Mason Preliminary Hearing July 25 2019

KNOXVILLE—An Anderson County man who has been convicted of two homicides and has been charged in state court with the attempted murder of a deputy was found guilty in federal court on Friday of gun and drug crimes that have potential sentences of life in prison.

A 12-person jury deliberated for about two hours Friday morning before reaching a unanimous verdict on the four federal charges.

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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. These stories generally take more than four hours to report, write, and publish.

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Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Courts, Front Page News, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Slider, United States Tagged With: ACSD, Alan Randa, Anderson County Sheriff's Department, ATF, attempted first-degree murder, attempted murder, Brent N. Jones, Charles Edward Mason, Chris Conner, Dennis Pemberton, felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, Gabriel Collins, homicide, Jake Stone, Josh Hedrick, LaToyia Carpenter, Marion West, Matt McGhee, Nina Osia, ossessing and brandishing firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, Pamela L. Reeves, Randy Seay, trial, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, U.S. District Court, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration

New federal designation means more law enforcement funding, full-time ATF agent

Posted at 10:24 am December 29, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Anderson-County-High-Intensity-Drug-Trafficking-Area-Press-Conference-Dec-17-2019
A new federal designation for Anderson County will mean more federal funding for the county’s drug and violent crime task force and a full-time agent from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark said Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A new federal designation for Anderson County will mean more federal funding for the county’s drug and violent crime task force and a full-time agent from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

Anderson County is now a high-intensity drug trafficking area, or HIDTA. That designation came from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. It occurred in September and will go into effect January 1.

As part of a two-part announcement this month, law enforcement officials said the White House also selected the county’s task force, the Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, as an Appalachia HIDTA, or AHIDTA. It’s the only locally led drug task force in Tennessee, according to Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark. The county’s Crime Task Force, or CTF, is led by Director Simon Byrne.

“No other drug task force in Tennessee has been awarded an AHIDTA grant,” Clark said. “I am very proud of our leadership team for thinking outside of the box and in looking for smart ways to make our communities safer as well as be good stewards of taxpayer dollars. We are more excited than we can convey, but in short believe that this development has the potential to be transformative as to what we are able to do in Anderson County to protect and serve our communities.”

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Clinton, Federal, Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge, Oliver Springs, Police, Police and Fire, Slider, Tennessee, U.S. Tagged With: AHIDTA, Anderson County, Appalachia HIDTA, ATF, Clinton Police Department, CTF, Dave Clark, Frank A. Haera, HIDTA, high-intensity drug trafficking area, J. Douglas Overbey, Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, Simon Byrne, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, White House, White House Office of National Drug Control Policy

TBI: Two juveniles charged with arson in deadly Sevier County wildfires

Posted at 6:45 pm December 7, 2016
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Fire Department mitchell-rd Sevier County

People being removed from vehicles while Oak Ridge Fire Department crews helped respond to the Sevier County wildfire starting Monday, Nov. 29, 2016. (Photo by Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley)

 

Note: This story was updated at 10 a.m. Dec. 8.

Two juveniles have been charged with aggravated arson in connection with the deadly wildfires in Sevier County last week, authorities said Wednesday. The fires burned more than 17,000 acres around the Chimney Tops trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and Wears Valley. Fourteen people died, 176 were injured or made ill, and more than 2,400 structures were damaged or destroyed.

Local fire departments and law enforcement agencies responded to help fight the fires and provide search and rescue help, among other aid. The fire in the park, the most heavily visited in the United States, and the nearby tourist towns has been described as the largest in Tennessee in at least 100 years.

The charges announced Wednesday afternoon were filed after an investigation by special agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation; National Park Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, or ATF; and the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Police and Fire, Tennessee, U.S. Tagged With: aggravated arson, arson, ATF, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, ChIME, fire, Gatlinburg, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, James Dunn, National Park Service, Pigeon Forge, Sevier County, Sevier County Juvenile Detention Center, Sevier County Sheriff’s Office, TBI, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Wears Valley, wildfires

U.S. attorneys, law enforcement target heroin, opioid trafficking, overdoses

Posted at 8:42 pm August 26, 2015
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Bill Killian

William C. “Bill” Killian

DETROIT—U.S. attorneys and leaders of federal law enforcement agencies from across six states met in Detroit on August 26, 2015, to share strategies to combat the heroin and prescription pill epidemic across the region.

U.S. Attorney William C. Killian of the Eastern District of Tennessee was among those who attended.

The summit was called in response to the national epidemic of heroin and prescription pill abuse that has hit Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, particularly hard. Heroin overdose deaths in the United States have tripled from 2010 to 2013. Nationally, the number of deaths from all drug overdoses exceeded 43,000 last year, more deaths than from traffic accidents. Heroin use in the United States has doubled from 2007 to 2012.

In the Midwest, opioid deaths have increased 62 percent. The summit seeks to target this national and regional problem by dismantling drug trafficking organizations that distribute heroin and prescription pills and by increasing prevention and educational efforts. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Federal, Front Page News, Government, Police and Fire, U.S. Tagged With: ATF, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, Daniel Salter, DEA, Drug Enforcement Administration, drug overdoses, Eastern District of Tennessee, FBI, Federal Bureau of Investigation, heroin, heroin overdose, Heroin Task Force, HIDTA, High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas, Homeland Security Investigations, HSI, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, IRS-CI, Kentucky, law enforcement, Michigan, OCDETF, Ohio, opioid deaths, Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, Pennsylvania, prescription pill, prescription pill epidemic, Tennessee, U.S. attorneys, U.S. Attorneys Offices, West Virginia, William C. Killian

Houston brothers face federal firearm charges

Posted at 12:28 pm January 15, 2013
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

Two brothers who were tried twice but never convicted in the 2006 shooting deaths of a Roane County Sheriff’s Department deputy and his ridealong partner are now facing federal charges.

Rocky and Leon Houston were both arrested Friday on federal firearms charges at the family’s home in the Ten Mile community after agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Roane County Sheriff’s Office; and other agencies executed search and arrest warrants.

U.S. Attorney Bill Killian says that Rocky Houston is charged with being a convicted felon in possession of firearms and that Leon Houston is charged with possession of firearms while being an unlawful user of controlled substances.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Police and Fire, Roane County, Top Stories Tagged With: ATF, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, Houston brothers, Leon Houston, Roane County Sheriff's Department, Rocky Houston, U.S. Attorney Bill Killian, U.S. Magistrate Bruce Guyton

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Classifieds

Public notice: Draft environmental assessment for Y-12 Development Organization at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

Public Notice: Final environmental assessment available for Lithium Processing Facility at Y-12

AVAILABILITY OF THE FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE LITHIUM PROCESSING FACILITY AT THE Y-12 … [Read More...]

Public Notice: Comment period extended for Draft EA for Lithium Processing Facility at Y-12

EXTENSION OF THE COMMENT PERIOD FOR THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE LITHIUM PROCESSING … [Read More...]

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