No one was injured when a car crashed into an Oak Ridge school bus on Thursday, police said.
The two-vehicle crash was reported at about 6:55 a.m. Thursday in the eastbound lanes of Oak Ridge Turnpike at Salem Road.
School bus #64 was struck on the driver’s side near the rear axle by a car pulling out onto the Turnpike from Salem Road, the Oak Ridge Police Department said. [Read more…]
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has identified the man who died in a Monday night officer-involved shooting at Anderson County General Sessions Court on Emory Valley Road as Isaiah D. Ramirez, 26. Above, police investigate after a chase was reported along Emory Valley Road and there were reports of shots fired on Monday evening, Oct. 8, 2018. The parking lot at Anderson County General Sessions Court on Emory Valley Road was blocked off with yellow tape, and there was a large emergency response presence that included members of the Oak Ridge Police Department, Oak Ridge Fire Department, Anderson County EMS, and District Attorney General Dave Clark, right. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was last updated at 4 p.m. Feb. 16.
An Oak Ridge police officer was legally entitled to use lethal force against a man who was driving toward the officer when he was struck by two bullets after a police chase in October, Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark said Thursday.
The shooting in the parking lot of the county courthouse and county offices on Emory Valley on October 8 killed Isaiah D. Ramirez, 36. The shooting was investigated by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, which is common in shootings that involve police officers. The case was assigned to TBI Agent Denise Woodby.
On Thursday, Clark announced that the investigation of the officer-involved shooting is complete. The investigation included a team of forensic scientists from the TBI Knoxville Violent Crime Response Team and forensic crime scene truck the day of the shooting, officer and witness statements, photographs and video recordings, laboratory testing and an autopsy, and evaluation of the crime scene and other observations, Clark said.
“Based upon the totality of the circumstances, Officer Nathan Gibson had a reasonable basis to believe at the time that the suspect, Isaiah Ramirez, posed a threat of death or serious bodily injury to him (Gibson),” Clark said in a press release. “Gibson met the requirement multiple times of verbally ordering Ramirez to stop. Thus, Gibson was legally entitled to use lethal force against Isaiah Ramirez. While gunshots were the immediate cause of Ramirez’s death, it was Ramirez’s own decisions and conduct that were responsible for his death. No criminal charges would be legal or appropriate against Officer Nathan Gibson.”
The results of the investigation were sent to Oak Ridge Police Chief Robin Smith. Among the findings, according to Clark: Ramirez, who had warrants for his arrest, fled from police in a pickup truck on Cumberland View Drive and forced two officers to jump out of his way to avoid being struck and narrowly missed another; drove around police trying to stop him and did not comply with verbal orders to stop, including from an officer who had his firearm drawn, or with police lights and sirens in a residential area and then down Emory Valley Road; and drove toward Gibson, who was standing with his weapon pointed at Gibson in the parking lot of the county courthouse and offices on Emory Valley Road. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge dispatchers and emergency workers switched to a new radio system last week that uses encrypted communications, and access is restricted to public safety employees.
That means that people who have listened to Oak Ridge police and fire communications, among other radio transmissions, on scanners and scanner apps but aren’t public safety employees such as police officers or firefighters will no longer be able to listen. That includes reporters.
“For the safety of our officers, the Police Department does not have any plans at this time to allow access to the radio system beyond public safety employees,” City of Oak Ridge spokesperson Sarah Self said in a brief statement Tuesday, January 29.
The switch was apparently made at about 1 p.m. Monday, January 28. Oak Ridge Today has not heard Oak Ridge dispatchers on the radio since then.
Oak Ridge Today asked what steps the city will take to ensure that people continue to stay informed at least about major police and fire incidents since reporters and the public will no longer be able to listen to emergency communications. [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Public Works Department said snow plows are ready if needed, and crews put brine on the roads on Monday, Jan. 28, 2019, to try to reduce the impact on driving conditions from the winter weather that is forecast to start overnight Monday and continue into Tuesday morning. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)
The Oak Ridge Public Works Department put brine on roads on Monday to try to reduce the effect that winter weather might have on driving conditions. Snow plows are ready, and the Oak Ridge Police Department and Oak Ridge Fire Department are preparing by bringing in extra emergency response staff, the City of Oak Ridge said.
Snow is possible, and temperatures are expected to plunge in the Oak Ridge area on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the seven-day forecast by the National Weather Service in Morristown.
The snow is expected starting overnight Monday and continuing into Tuesday morning. The low on Wednesday night is forecast at 9Â degrees Fahrenheit. [Read more…]
The Oak Ridge Police Department has rescheduled the Neighborhood Watch Program Banquet that had been scheduled for Tuesday.
The banquet has been rescheduled due to weather, the ORPD said in a post published on Twitter.
It is now scheduled for 6 p.m. February 12 at Central Baptist Church. [Read more…]
Image by Oak Ridge Police Department
The Oak Ridge teenager who had been reported missing this month was safely located in Campbell County on Saturday night, police said.
The teen, Devin Davis, 17, of Oak Ridge, had been last seen on January 8, the Oak Ridge Police Department said last week. He was reported missing by his legal guardian. The ORPD asked for help locating Devin and said he could be in the Campbell County/LaFollette area.
“Thanks to all who shared this information during the search,” the ORPD said Sunday.
More information will be added as it becomes available.
Note: This story was updated at 11:30 a.m. Jan. 24.
Local law enforcement officers haven’t noticed an impact on investigations or criminal proceedings from the partial shutdown of the federal government, but agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which has helped investigate crimes in Oak Ridge, are working without pay.
The shutdown is in its 33rd day, and it is the longest ever. It began Saturday, December 22, and it affects about 25 percent of the U.S. government, including the departments of Homeland Security and Justice, among other federal agencies. The shutdown hinges on a dispute between President Donald Trump and Democrats in Congress over whether to spend $5.7 billion to build a wall on the border with Mexico.
On Wednesday, the Oak Ridge Police Department said it has not observed any impact from the partial government shutdown, and the ORPD continues to work with its federal partners. Besides the FBI, the ORPD also works with, for example, the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark said he is not aware of any impact at this time, including on investigations or criminal proceedings. Clark said he just met with the Anderson County sheriff and the county’s police chiefs on Tuesday, and “there was no mention of anyone experiencing issues.” [Read more…]
Image via Oak Ridge Police Department
The Oak Ridge Police Department is asking for the public’s help to find a missing teenager.
The teen, Devin Davis, 17, of Oak Ridge, was last seen on January 8, the ORPD said. He was reported missing by his legal guardian.
If you have seen Devin or have information about where he might be, you are asked to call the Oak Ridge Police Department at (865) 425-4399.
Police say Devin may be in the Campbell County/LaFollette area.
More information will be added as it becomes available.
Five Oak Ridge Police Department officers were injured in a fight with a defendant on Saturday, a man was held against his will by the defendant, and officers used a Taser on the defendant more than once, police said.
The 39-year-old defendant is now charged with five counts of aggravated assault on an officer and aggravated kidnapping, among other charges.
It’s not the first time the man has been accused of assaulting a police officer. In September, he pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer in a previous case.
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James William Donald
Law enforcement officers found about 10 grams of suspected heroin in their second search of a home on West Outer Drive in less than two years.
The defendant, James William Donald, 71, told Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force Agent Kenneth Woods that he would “take money from other individuals for the purchase of heroin as well as provide heroin to friends that would visit his residence,” according to arrest warrants filed in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge in December.
The home on West Outer Drive is within about 75 feet of the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge, according to the warrants.
The most recent search by the Crime Task Force occurred on Thursday, December 20. The CTF had a search warrant to seize all controlled substances, the warrants said. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge Police Department officers started a memorial with stuffed animals for a child killed in a fatal two-vehicle crash at Emory Valley Road and Lafayette Drive on Friday evening, Jan. 13, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was updated at 7 p.m.
A second person has been charged with homicide in the death of a young boy in a traffic crash in Oak Ridge in January 2017.
Jason Robert Braden III, 3, died in the two-vehicle crash, which injured at least three other people and was considered a mass casualty event. It was reported at about 5:20 p.m. Friday, January 13, 2017, at the intersection of Emory Valley Road and Lafayette Drive.
In March 2018, Oak Ridge Today reported that an Anderson County man, Jason Robert Braden II, 25, had been charged, after the crash, in an 11-count indictment that included vehicular homicide by intoxication. The other charges against Braden included vehicular homicide by recklessness, four counts of reckless aggravated assault, reckless endangerment when a deadly weapon (a motor vehicle) is involved, driving under the influence, driving without a license, speeding, and violation of the child restraint law.
That case is still pending in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton. The homicide and assault charges are felonies, while the driving offenses are misdemeanors.
The second person, Ashley Marie Ann Braden, 23, was indicted by the Anderson County Grand Jury in Clinton on December 4. She was charged with a single felony count of criminally negligent homicide. The indictment alleged that Braden engaged in criminally negligent conduct that resulted in the death of Jason Robert Braden III. The indictment does not elaborate on the alleged facts of the case, which is typical for indictments. [Read more…]
The former American Museum of Science and Energy building on South Tulane Avenue was recently vandalized, and it will cost the City of Oak Ridge several thousand dollars to re-secure the building, authorities said Thursday, Dec. 20, 2018. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge/Oak Ridge Police Department)
The former American Museum of Science and Energy building on South Tulane Avenue was recently vandalized, and it will cost the City of Oak Ridge several thousand dollars to re-secure the building, authorities said Thursday.
The vandalism was reported at about 9:19 p.m. Tuesday, when a person saw a broken window at the former AMSE, the Oak Ridge Police Department said.
“When officers arrived, they discovered the interior and exterior of the vacant building, which is owned by the City of Oak Ridge government, had been damaged during a recent break-in,” the ORPD said. [Read more…]
