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Evaluation ordered for Finnegan, charged with murder, rape, kidnapping

Posted at 11:06 am August 22, 2020
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Sean Finnegan, one of two defendants in a series of gruesome alleged crimes in Oak Ridge between December 2019 and August 2020, including murder, sex crimes, and kidnapping, is pictured above in a mugshot from the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office.

An evaluation at Ridgeview Psychiatric Hospital has been ordered for a 52-year-old man charged with murder, rape, kidnapping, and abuse of a corpse in a series of gruesome crimes allegedly committed against a 36-year-old woman in a home in east Oak Ridge between December 2019 and August 2020.

The evaluation was ordered for Sean Finnegan in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge on Friday. The evaluation was recommended by Finnegan’s attorney, who was able to show why it should be conducted, Anderson County General Sessions Court Judge Roger Miller said in the order.

Finnegan is represented by Kathy Kroeger, a public defender in the Seventh Judicial District in Anderson County.

The evaluation by Ridgeview is expected to include Finnegan’s competency to stand trial and his mental capacity at the time he allegedly committed the crimes against Jennifer Gail Paxton of Knoxville. It is also expected to include an IQ test and an evaluation of Finnegan’s ability to assess his conduct.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: abuse of a corpse, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated rape, aggravated sexual battery, Anderson County General Sessions Court, first-degree murder, Jennifer Gail Paxton, Kathy Kroeger, Marvell Moore, Oak Ridge Police Department, psychiatric evaluation, Rebecca Dishman, Ridgeview Psychiatric Hospital, Roger Miller, Sean Finnegan, Seventh Judicial District, tampering with evidence

AC, ORPD to discuss program to combat elder abuse

Posted at 1:27 pm January 13, 2020
By Carolyn H Krause Leave a Comment

Dave Clark

Dave Clark

Submitted

Elder abuse is a new focus of Anderson County and the Oak Ridge Police Department. The two agencies are preparing to jointly implement a Senior Citizens Awareness Network, or SCAN, program that will likely start later this year to deal with the crime.

District Attorney General David Clark of the Seventh Judicial District and his Anderson County office are leading the charge on combating elder abuse, and the office will be running the SCAN program, according to a press release. RPD will help implement the program in Oak Ridge.

Clark and ORPD Detective Wendy Zolkowski will speak Thursday, January 16, about the SCAN program, elder abuse in Oak Ridge, and the ways seniors can be protected.

Their talks will be the first in 2020 in the lecture series sponsored by Roane State Community College and the Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning. They will speak at 2 p.m. Thursday in the City Room (A-111) of the Coffey-McNally building on RSCC’s Oak Ridge Branch Campus, 701 Briarcliff Avenue. ORPD is hosting the presentation, which will be preceded by a reception with refreshments at 1:30 p.m. in the lobby. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Community, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: Adult Protective Services, Dave Clark, David Clark, elder abuse, Oak Ridge Police Department, ORPD, Roane State Community College, SCAN, Senior Citizens Awareness Network, Seventh Judicial District, Wendy Zolkowski

Coria appointed district public defender

Posted at 3:47 pm October 22, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Ann Coria has been appointed public defender in the Seventh Judicial District in Anderson County.

A Republican, Coria replaces Tom Marshall, a Democrat who was re-elected to a fourth eight-year term in 2014. Marshall, who had served as Anderson County public defender since 1989, retired at the end of September.

Coria, who has been an assistant public defender and worked in the office for about 20 years, applied for the position. After an interview process and background check, she was appointed district public defender by Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Tuesday, October 15.

“I believe that I have the skills to run the office and the knowledge of what’s needed,” Coria said in a phone interview on Tuesday. “It is a unique set of skills.”

There will be a special election in 2020 to choose someone who will serve the last two years of Marshall’s eight-year term and a regular election for an eight-year term in 2022.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Front Page News, Government, State, Top Stories Tagged With: Ann Coria, Bill Lee, Democrat, public defender, Republican, Seventh Judicial District, Tom Marshall

For members: Man sentenced to 14 years after taking van from woman in wheelchair

Posted at 12:59 pm September 19, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Bradley Allan Thomas

 

A Knoxville man was sentenced to 14 years in prison on Thursday after he stole a van from a woman in a wheelchair in the parking lot of the Red Lobster restaurant in Oak Ridge last year. Authorities had alleged that the man pushed the woman out and took the van through force or intimidation while using a deadly weapon (a large knife).

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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, Anderson County, Courts, Courts, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Slider, Tennessee Tagged With: aggravated robbery, Anderson County Criminal Court, Anderson County General Sessions Court, Anderson County Sheriff's Department, Bradley Allan Thomas, carjacking, Emily Faye Abbott, evading arrest, Jonathan Acker, Nathan Gibson, Oak Ridge Police Department, plea, plea deal, Red Lobster, Seventh Judicial District, Tennessee Highway Patrol

Oak Ridge man charged with murder in drug death

Posted at 2:38 pm August 27, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Ronald Nicholas Bunch
Ronald Nicholas Bunch

An Oak Ridge man has been charged with second-degree murder in the drug-related death of another Oak Ridge man in February.

It could be the first time that anyone has been charged with murder, rather than homicide, for a drug-related fatality in Anderson County. There has been a previous case where a man was charged with and convicted of homicide in a drug overdose death.

The man who died on February 6 was Steven Douglas Scruggs, 34.

Indicted in his death was Ronald Nicholas Bunch, 28, of West Wadsworth Circle in Oak Ridge. Bunch’s indictment for second-degree murder on June 4 said he unlawfully and knowingly killed Scruggs through the unlawful distribution of a Schedule II controlled substance, and the drug caused Scruggs’ death. Second-degree murder is a Class A felony in Tennessee.

The charge of second-degree murder, part of a three-count indictment, doesn’t specifically say what drug killed Scruggs. But the second count of the indictment charged Bunch with possessing fentanyl, a Schedule II medication, for resale.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Anderson County, Courts, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Criminal Court, drug death, drug-related death, drug-related fatality, fentanyl, heroin, Jeremy Phillips, Oak Ridge Police Department, Ronald Nicholas Bunch, Ryan M. Spitzer, second-degree murder, Seventh Judicial District, Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, Steven Douglas Scruggs, Timothy Buckner

TBI: Man reportedly pointed gun at officers before they fatally shot him

Posted at 10:12 pm August 13, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark, center, talks to the media after a fatal shooting involving officers on West Broad Street near the city limits of north Clinton on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. Also pictured are Anderson County Sheriff Russell Barker, left, and Clinton Police Chief Vaughn Becker, right. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was last updated at 12 p.m. Aug. 15.

CLINTON—A man who was reported to be suicidal had reportedly pointed a gun at officers before they fired their guns, fatally striking him, during a standoff with police near the city limits of north Clinton on Tuesday evening, authorities said.

On Wednesday, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation identified the man as Jerry Orlando Weaver, 51, of Clinton.

A 911 caller had reported a suicidal man with a firearm in the 600 block of West Broad Street at about 5:40 p.m. Tuesday, authorities said. The man was reported to be near the roadway with a gun, according to the TBI, which is investigating the officer-involved shooting.

The Clinton Police Department, Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, and Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force responded. There were reported to be more than a dozen officers at the site. There was a standoff of about 15 to 20 minutes, said Dave Clark, district attorney general in the Seventh Judicial District in Anderson County.

When they arrived, officers made contact with the man, who was threatening to harm himself, the TBI said.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Clinton, Front Page News, Police, Police and Fire, Slider, Tennessee Tagged With: Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, Clinton, Clinton Police Department, Dave Clark, Jerry Orlando Weaver, officer-involved shooting, Seventh Judicial District, Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, shooting, TBI, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, West Broad Street

DA receives $240,000 federal grant for Family Justice Center

Posted at 2:24 pm July 18, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Family Justice Center Site Coordinator Melissa Miller and Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark are pictured above at the signing of the grant contract for the Anderson County Family Justice Center in July 2019. (Submitted photo)

The district attorney general in Anderson County has received a $240,000 federal grant to set up a family justice center.

The Anderson County Family Justice Center will help combat child abuse, domestic abuse, and elder abuse, Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark said in press release on Tuesday. It will be organized and formed during the first year or two of the grant contract, Clark said.

“Upon opening the actual center, there will be a location where (Anderson County residents) with abuse issues can go to get services from a variety of providers who will all have a representative located in the Family Justice Center,” Clark said. “In addition, referrals may be made by the Family Justice Center to other organizations that can provide help.”

Melissa Miller has been hired as the site coordinator of the Family Justice Center.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Anderson County, Courts, Front Page News, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Family Justice Center, child abuse, Dave Clark, domestic abuse, elder abuse, family justice center, Melissa Miller, Seventh Judicial District, Tennessee Office of Criminal Justice Programs

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

Posted at 11:15 am May 30, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

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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If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to: Oak Ridge Today P.O. Box 6064 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 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.

Filed Under: Anderson County, Anderson County, Courts, Front Page News, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Top Stories Tagged With: aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, Anderson County, Anderson County Criminal Court, Anderson County General Sessions Court, Anderson County Sheriff's Department, attempted first-degree murder, attempted murder, Austin Powell, Charles Edward Mason, Clinton Police Department, Dave Clark, Don Layton, homicide, Jake Stone, James Brooks, Jerry A. Jarrell, murder, plea deal, reckless endangerment, reckless homicide, robbery, Sandra Donaghy, Seventh Judicial District, Tom Marshall

For members: Man sentenced to 10 years in shooting death of girlfriend’s mother

Posted at 11:14 am May 18, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

William James McMillan

An Andersonville man was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Monday when he pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the shooting death of his girlfriend’s mother four years ago.

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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If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to: Oak Ridge Today P.O. Box 6064 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 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.

Filed Under: Anderson County, Anderson County, Andersonville, Courts, Front Page News, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Tennessee, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Criminal Court, Anderson County Detention Facility, Anderson County Sheriff's Department, Don Elledge, Gregory P. Isaacs, Karen Zahrobsky, Lone Mountain Road, plea agreement, plea deal, Seventh Judicial District, shooting death, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Tony Craighead, voluntary manslaughter, William James McMillan

DA: Granddaughter in murder case was malnourished, smothered

Posted at 10:24 am May 14, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Valerie Stenson

The young granddaughter who died in Oak Ridge in 2011 was malnourished and had been smothered, District Attorney General Dave Clark said Friday, after the child’s grandmother pleaded guilty to second-degree murder last Tuesday.

Emergency workers and law enforcement officers responded to a 911 call at Teller Village Apartments around 1:30 p.m. Monday, April 11, 2011. The grandmother, Valerie Stenson, now 54, was trying to revive her granddaughter, Manhattan Inman, using cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, Clark said in a press release Friday.

“An autopsy reveled that the child was malnourished, and the cause of death was smothering,” said Clark, who is DA in the Seventh Judicial District (Anderson County).

Manhattan was two years and nine months old when she died, Clark said.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire Tagged With: aggravated child abuse, Alexander Brown, Anderson County Criminal Court, child abuse, Dave Clark, death penalty, district attorney general, Donald R. Elledge, first-degree murder, Manhattan Inman, Oak Ridge Police Department, plea deal, second-degree murder, Seventh Judicial District, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Thomas Slaughter, Tony Craighead, Valerie Stenson

Grandmother sentenced to 30 years in murder plea deal

Posted at 7:29 pm May 7, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Valerie Stenson

A grandmother pleaded guilty Tuesday to second-degree murder in the death of her young granddaughter in Oak Ridge eight years ago, and she was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Valerie Stenson, 54, who has an address listed in Knoxville, was ordered to serve 100 percent of her sentence.

Stenson had been charged with first-degree murder in the death of her granddaughter, Manhattan Inman, who was 18 months old when she was found dead in a home on Teller Village Lane on April 17, 2011.

The first-degree murder charge was reduced to second-degree murder as part of the plea deal entered in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton on Tuesday.

Prosecutors had once sought the death penalty against Stenson, but it was withdrawn in March 2018. Prosecutors cited mental health issues, expense, and the strain put on the local court system in death penalty cases.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Anderson County, Courts, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Top Stories Tagged With: aggravated child abuse, aggravated child abuse and neglect, aggravated child abuse or neglect, aggravated child endangerment, aggravated child neglect, Anderson County Criminal Court, death penalty, Donald R. Elledge, first-degree murder, Manhattan Inman, plea deal, second-degree murder, Seventh Judicial District, Thomas Slaughter, Valerie Stenson

For members: Drug case involved thousands of pills, overseas apprehension, possible deportation

Posted at 4:34 pm May 4, 2019
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

CLINTON—A drug case that started with an online search for Xanax ended with a police search that found more than 10,000 pills in an Anderson County home, an overseas apprehension, three plea deals, and a possible deportation.

The third and final plea deal was entered during a hearing in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton late Friday morning. The defendant, who had been brought to the United States after being detained at an airport in Dubai in July, wants to be deported, his attorney said.

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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If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to: Oak Ridge Today P.O. Box 6064 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 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.

Filed Under: Anderson County, Anderson County, Courts, Courts, Front Page News, Police and Fire, Premium Content, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Criminal Court, Anderson County Detention Facility, clonazepam, conspiracy to sell Schedule IV drugs, deportation, drug case, Gene McKinley Miller, international extradition, Kevin Angel, lorazepam, Moshin Agha, plea deal, possession of Schedule IV drugs for resale, Ryan Spitzer, Seventh Judicial District, Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force, Shelley Dawn Hicks Robbins, tramodol, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, zolpidem

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Classifieds

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...]

Public Notice: Draft Environmental Assessment Available for Lithium Production Facility at Y-12

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

Availability of the Final Environmental Assessment for the Oak Ridge Enhanced Technology and Training Center (ORETTC) (DOE/EA-2144), Finding of No Significant Impact, and Wetland Statement of Findings

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the … [Read More...]

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