The teenager who had been missing more than three weeks was found safe Wednesday night, the Oak Ridge Police Department said.
Jade Dush, 17, had been reported missing July 17. She was found safe in Oak Ridge, the ORPD said.
“Thank you to everyone who shared information during the search,” the ORPD said.
Two attempted first-degree murder charges filed against a 20-year-old woman after a shooting in an Oak Ridge apartment parking lot in May have been sent to the Anderson County Grand Jury.
The charges against Kali Annabelle Bailey, whose last known address was in Powell, were bound over, or sent to, the grand jury, after a 100-minute preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge on Tuesday, July 31. A victim and a police officer both testified during the preliminary hearing.
Bailey is accused of shooting into a Kia Optima car that had two people inside and was backed into a parking space in the Manhattan Apartments on North Purdue Avenue at about 11:03 p.m. May 6 as part of a possible dispute between two women over a man, which was described in court as jealousy or a “love triangle.”
The rest of this story, which includes testimony that you will read about only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or recent contributor.Â
Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here.
Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:
Please let us know if you advertise on Oak Ridge Today, have recently contributed, or subscribe through PayPal or check payments, but you have not yet been added to our website as a member. You can send an email to [email protected] to be added. Thank you!
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.
The Oak Ridge Police Department said Wednesday that it is still searching for a missing teenager, 17-year-old Jade Dush.
She was reported missing July 17. Investigators now believe she may be traveling in a white 2003 Toyota RAV4 with TN plate 0M3-8B4, the ORPD said. Jade was also recently spotted in the Farragut area.
“If you’ve seen Jade or have any information on where she might be, contact Oak Ridge Police at (865) 425-4399,” the ORPD said.
A motorcyclist was flown to a Knoxville hospital in a medical helicopter with what were described as serious injuries after crashing into a power pole on West Outer Drive on Wednesday morning, Aug. 8, 2018. authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was updated at 2:50 p.m.
A 20-year-old motorcyclist was flown to a Knoxville hospital in a medical helicopter with what were described as serious injuries after crashing into a power pole on West Outer Drive on Wednesday morning, authorities said.
The single-vehicle crash, which was a few blocks east of North Illinois Avenue in an area with a curve and a hill, was reported at about 7:10 a.m. Wednesday. The motorcycle was heading west when it left the roadway and struck a utility pole, according to the Oak Ridge Police Department.
After the crash, the male motorcyclist was airlifted to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville from Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge, said Eric Rackard, battalion chief for the Oak Ridge Fire Department. [Read more…]
Jade Dush
The Oak Ridge Police Department is asking for the public’s help to find a missing teen. Jade Dush, age 17, of Oak Ridge, was last seen at her home on the evening of July 16, 2018.
She was reported missing the following day by her legal guardian, the ORPD said.
If you’ve seen Jade or have any information on where she might be, contact the Oak Ridge Police Department at (865) 425-4399. [Read more…]
An Oak Ridge Police Department school zone patrol is pictured above. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge)
A new school year will start next week, and the Oak Ridge Police Department will help to make sure students and families stay safe with Operation Safe Start beginning Monday, July 30, the first day of school, a press release said.
“The effort steps up police patrols to increase awareness of school zones and ensure drivers are following the law,” the press release said. “Residents will likely notice additional police vehicles and officers in school zones across the city.”
The press release said officers will be on the lookout for drivers who exceed posted speed limits, ignore school bus stop signs, and fail to yield for pedestrians. ORPD will also be enforcing seat belt, child passenger restraint, and distracted driving laws, including the new state law requiring the use of hands free devices in active school zones, the press release said. [Read more…]
Pictured above at left during the trial for Noelle Patty, 41, center, of Oak Ridge, in Anderson County Criminal Court on Wednesday, July 25, 2018, are defense attorneys Michael Ritter, left, and David Ege. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was last updated at 4:20 p.m.
CLINTON—An Anderson County jury on Wednesday found an Oak Ridge resident guilty of criminally negligent homicide after a fatal car-motorcycle crash on North Illinois Avenue more than two years ago.
The jury of 10 men and two women deliberated about three hours before reaching its unanimous verdict at the end of a two-day trial of Noelle Leigh Patty, 41, in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton.
Patty was found not guilty of a second count, reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon, but the jury did find her guilty of what is known as a lesser included offense, a charge of reckless endangerment.
Patty was convicted of the two charges in the death of motorcyclist Rufus E. Shephard III, 44, of Oak Ridge.
“They finally got my brother some justice,” said Linda Shephard, after family members had exchanged hugs and tears with prosecutors and police officers. [Read more…]
Noelle Leigh Patty
Note: This story was updated at 4 p.m. July 25.
The state will not prosecute three misdemeanor charges that had been filed against an Oak Ridge woman after a fatal car-motorcycle crash more than two years ago, but prosecutors will proceed to trial on two felony charges: criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment.
The trial has been scheduled for Tuesday for Noelle Leigh Patty, 41, in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton. Patty has been charged with homicide in the death of motorcyclist Rufus E. Shephard III, 44, of Oak Ridge.
The court was notified of the state’s decision not to prosecute the three misdemeanor charges last week, and a judgement was filed Tuesday, July 17. The three misdemeanor charges are failure to yield the right of way resulting in death, failure to obey a traffic control device, and failure to provide evidence of insurance.
“The state has elected to go to trial only on the felony charges in Count 1 and 5,” said the state’s notice, filed last week by Seventh Judicial District Assistant District Attorney General Emily Faye Abbott. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi
Note: This story was updated at 12:35 a.m.
Oak Ridge Police Chief James T. Akagi has been placed on administrative leave, and Deputy Chief Robin Smith has taken over daily operations for now, City Manager Mark Watson said Thursday.
Akagi is on leave until Watson can meet with him after returning from a trip to China, the city manager said.
Three anonymous letters were sent in June and July to Watson, Oak Ridge City Council members, other law enforcement officials, and local media outlets. The letters have been reviewed and have been a catalyst for concern, Watson said Thursday.
The letters are not signed, but they said they are from Oak Ridge Police Department employees. One letter said it represented an “overwhelming majority” of ORPD members. Among other things, the letters raised concerns about harassment, a hostile work environment, hostility, retaliation, policy decisions, and turnover. The letters ask for Akagi’s removal or termination, and an investigation by the Tennessee Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission or some other “independent and unbiased agency.” They said conditions have not improved since the 2015 review by the Municipal Technical Advisory Service at the University of Tennessee and have gotten worse instead. [Read more…]
Damian Vincent Reynolds
A Wartburg man who allegedly walked out of the Anderson County jail after standing in line with other inmates who were being released from the booking area has been arrested and charged with escape.
Damian V. Reynolds, 39, was brought to the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton from Morgan County at about 6:33 p.m. Wednesday, July 11. He was standing in the booking area in his civilian clothes, and several other inmates were being booked out, according to an affidavit filed in Anderson County General Session Court, Division I, in Clinton.
Reynolds stood in line with those other inmates who were being released and proceeded to walk out the jail door without being released, the affidavit said. [Read more…]
Noelle Leigh Patty
CLINTON—A trial has been scheduled this month for an Oak Ridge woman charged with homicide after a fatal car-motorcycle crash on North Illinois Avenue in January 2016.
The felony jury trial for Noelle Leigh Patty, 41, is scheduled for July 24 in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton. Patty has been charged with homicide in the death of motorcyclist Rufus E. Shephard III, 44, of Oak Ridge.
On Friday, Anderson County Criminal Court Judge Don Elledge rejected a motion to dismiss two of the five charges filed against Patty: criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment when a deadly weapon is involved. The Anderson County Grand Jury has found probable cause on the five charges, Elledge said, and no facts or evidence had been presented to the court yet. He called the motion to dismiss “totally premature.”
Patty was indicted on the five charges by the Anderson County Grand Jury on August 1, 2017. Besides homicide and reckless endangerment, the charges included failure to yield the right-of-way resulting in death, failure to obey a traffic control device, and failure to provide proof of insurance.
The crash occurred between a Cadillac STS car and Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle on Sunday evening, January 31, 2016, at the western exit of the Westcott Center, the Kroger shopping center. Authorities said Patty, who was driving the Cadillac, made an improper left turn from a right-turn-only lane at that exit, and she failed to yield to Shephard, who was riding the motorcycle north on North Illinois Avenue. Shephard died after he collided with the car, which was turning south in “the pathway of northbound traffic,â€Â Oak Ridge Police Department Officer Chris Luethge said in arrest warrants filed after the crash.
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. The rest of the story includes information about the “undisputed facts,” results of alcohol and drug tests, and arguments for and against dismissing two of the five charges.
Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here.
Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:
Please let us know if you advertise on Oak Ridge Today, have recently contributed, or subscribe through PayPal or check payments, but you have not yet been added to our website as a member. You can send an email to [email protected] to be added. Thank you!
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 coverage of court cases and in-depth, investigative, and exclusive stories.
The Oak Ridge Police Department investigates a shooting on East Holston Lane at about 1 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
CLINTON—An Oak Ridge man and woman pleaded guilty on Monday to their roles in a robbery that started as a drug deal set up through social media and ended with a shooting that injured one person.
The plea agreements for the two defendants, Nicole Marie Brewer, 21, and Nicholas Rashad Strickland, 27, were entered in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Monday. The robbery and shooting were reported on East Holston Lane in Oak Ridge on Tuesday, November 15, 2016.
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.Â
Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here.
Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here:
Please let us know if you advertise on Oak Ridge Today, have recently contributed, or subscribe through PayPal or check payments, but you have not yet been added to our website as a member. You can send an email to [email protected] to be added. Thank you!
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.
