THP Archives - Oak Ridge Today

More charges pending after carjacking, chase, crash

Posted at 5:59 pm June 28, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The driver of a vehicle allegedly stolen from a woman in a wheelchair in Oak Ridge on Saturday, June 23, 2018, fled from law enforcement officers, running red lights and passing vehicles in the turn lane at high speed, before crashing into a car and a traffic light pole on Clinton Highway at Powell Drive in Knox County, an incident report said. (Submitted photo)

More charges are pending after a carjacking of a van occupied by a woman in a wheelchair in Oak Ridge on Saturday led to a police chase and crash on Clinton Highway in Knox County.

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Department has already said it would seek warrants against the suspect, Bradley Allan Thomas, 30, of Knoxville, and the Oak Ridge Police Department said criminal charges are pending.

Now, in a preliminary crash report, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said it is filing its own charges. They include reckless endangerment, reckless driving, obedience to traffic control signal, failure to maintain lane, improper passing, and driving on a suspended license.

“These are all THP charges and do not include outside agencies’ pending charges,” the crash report said.

An Anderson County Sheriff’s Department incident report said deputies would seek warrants against Thomas for evading arrest and reckless endangerment. [Read more…]

One adult, teenage driver, two children injured in crash near Norris

Posted at 12:04 am May 3, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A 17-year-old driver was flown to a hospital by a medical helicopter after a two-vehicle crash near Norris on Wednesday morning, and an adult driver and two young children were taken to a hospital with serious and minor injuries, authorities said.

The head-on collision was reported at about 7:35 a.m. on State Route 61 at Bethel Road just east of Interstate 75, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol.

The 17-year-old was driving west on SR 61 in a 1999 Mazda 4000 when the teenager crossed the center line around Bethel Road, the THP said. [Read more…]

Two crashes reported; one fatal, involved pedestrian

Posted at 7:51 pm May 2, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A fatal crash involving a pedestrian was reported in Marlow on Wednesday morning, and a a serious crash that required three ambulances and a medical helicopter was reported near Interstate 75, authorities said.

The first crash was on Andersonville Highway at Bethel Road just east of Interstate 75 around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, said Mark Lucas, Anderson County Sheriff’s Department chief deputy.

Three ambulances were needed, Lucas said. A UT Lifestar medical helicopter responded, and it flew one person to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, Lucas said. Anderson County EMS drove two injured people to UT Medical Center as well. There were serious injuries, Lucas said.

The second crash, the fatal crash, was reported a few hours later, at about 10 a.m. Wednesday on Oliver Springs Highway at Old Batley Road. In that crash, a pedestrian was hit by a vehicle, Lucas said. [Read more…]

Driver seriously injured in crash with train

Posted at 2:39 pm April 16, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A 22-year-old driver was seriously injured in a crash with a train in Anderson County on Saturday, authorities said.

The driver has been identified as Benjamin Sharp. After the crash, he was taken by an Anderson County EMS ambulance to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville with what were reported to be life-threatening injuries. Information on his current condition wasn’t immediately available Monday afternoon.

The crash was reported at about 5:30 p.m. Saturday on Patterson Lane off Old Lake City Highway.

The Tennessee Highway Patrol said Sharp was trying to cross the railroad tracks to a home off Old Lake City Highway when the 2009 Jeep Commander he was driving was hit by the train. [Read more…]

Attempted carjacking charge added in crash that injured officer

Posted at 11:14 am April 13, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Khristoff Deshawn Lee

An attempted carjacking charge has been added to the eight charges already filed against a man accused of injuring an Oak Ridge officer when he fled from police and crashed on South Illinois Avenue last week.

After the five-vehicle crash on Wednesday, April 4, Khristoff Deshawn Lee, 24, of Oak Ridge, was charged with three felony counts of aggravated assault by motor vehicle, two felony counts of reckless endangerment, one felony count of aggravated domestic assault, and one misdemeanor count of evading arrest and another misdemeanor count of resisting, stop, halt, and frisk.

The attempted carjacking charge, a Class C felony, was added Friday, April 6, according to Anderson County court records.

An affidavit filed in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Oak Ridge said Lee, who was reported to be a fugitive, tried to force his way into two different vehicles in the Panera Bread parking lot as he fled from police on foot after the April 4 crash. [Read more…]

Man dies, teen injured in Oliver Springs crash

Posted at 12:49 pm March 28, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

A 44-year-old man died and a teenager was injured in a two-vehicle crash in Oliver Springs on Sunday evening, authorities said.

Anthony M. Maston, who has an address listed in Oliver Springs, was driving north in a 2016 Kia sport utility vehicle on State Route 62 when he crossed the center line into the southbound lane and hit a southbound 2010 Nissan Altima car driven by a 17-year-old Oliver Springs girl, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said in a report.

Maston died due to the crash, which was reported at about 8:17 p.m. Sunday near the intersection with State Route 61, the THP said. He was not wearing a seat belt, the report said.

The 17-year-old driver of the second vehicle, the Nissan Altima car, was injured. She wasn’t wearing a seat belt either and neither was her 16-year-old passenger, the THP said. [Read more…]

Man dies in Clinton Highway crash

Posted at 8:55 am March 28, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

An 86-year-old man died in a two-vehicle crash on Clinton Highway late Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.

Fred Lay, who has a Clinton address, was driving east on Bull Run Road in Claxton in a 2005 Mercury Sable car when he turned onto southbound US Highway 25W (Clinton Highway), the Tennessee Highway Patrol said in a report. His vehicle turned into the path of a 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer sport utility vehicle driven south in the inside lane of Clinton Highway by Marissa N. McCormick, 27, of Powell, and the two vehicles collided, the report said.

Southbound Clinton Highway heads toward Knoxville.

Lay died due to the crash, which was reported at about 4:56 p.m. Tuesday, the THP said. McCormick was not injured. [Read more…]

Woman arrested for probation violation after fatal creek crash

Posted at 11:42 am March 22, 2018
By John Huotari 1 Comment

Rebecca L. Vanasse

An Oak Ridge woman was arrested on a probation violation charge after a fatal crash in Poplar Creek in Roane County on Tuesday, authorities said.

Rebecca L. Vanasse, 26, of North Purdue Avenue, was arrested by the Oak Ridge Police Department on the violation of probation charge on Tuesday, according to Anderson County court and jail records. A hold has also been placed on Vanasse for Rhea County, and she remained jailed at the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton on Thursday morning, according to those records.

Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Mark Lucas confirmed that Vanasse is the same woman who has been identified as the driver in the fatal creek crash on Poplar Creek Road on Tuesday. She was arrested by ORPD after she was treated and released from the emergency room, Lucas said.

“We had a probation violation warrant and Rhea County had a warrant as well,” he said. [Read more…]

Criminal charges pending in fatal crash in Poplar Creek

Posted at 12:40 pm March 21, 2018
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A 50-year-old Rocky Top man died when a 2006 Mazda car crashed off Poplar Creek Road and into Poplar Creek just north of west Oak Ridge late Tuesday morning, authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A 50-year-old Rocky Top man died when a 2006 Mazda 3 car crashed off Poplar Creek Road and into Poplar Creek just north of west Oak Ridge late Tuesday morning, authorities said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

ROANE COUNTY—A 50-year-old Rocky Top man died and one person was injured when a car crashed off Poplar Creek Road and into Poplar Creek just north of west Oak Ridge late Tuesday morning, and criminal charges are pending, authorities said.

The man who died, Warner D. Martin, was a passenger in a silver 2006 Mazda 3 four-door car driven by Rebecca L. Vanasse, 26, of Oak Ridge, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol.

Carrying three people, the car swerved on the narrow, curvy road and overcorrected, the THP said in a fatality report. Because of the overcorrection, the vehicle went down an embankment along the westbound side of the road and into the creek, where it became fully submerged, the THP said.

The single-vehicle crash was reported on Poplar Creek Road a few miles east of Blair Road at about 11:04 a.m. Tuesday. The front end of the car appeared to have plunged into the creek first. [Read more…]

Man killed in crash on Dutch Valley Road

Posted at 12:03 pm December 11, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A 40-year-old man was killed after being ejected from a car in a single-vehicle crash on Dutch Valley Road in Anderson County on Sunday afternoon, authorities said.

Winston T. Nelson, of Clinton, was driving east in a 1992 Mazda Miata convertible on Dutch Valley Road near Smith Road when he failed to maintain his lane, according to information from the Tennessee Highway Patrol and Anderson County Sheriff’s Department.

Nelson swerved to avoid a collision with a westbound vehicle when he lost control of his car, went off the left shoulder of the road, and struck an embankment and then an AT&T phone box, the THP said in a fatality report. After hitting the phone box, the Mazda Miata spun and collided with a tree, the THP said. That impact caused the car to keep spinning until it stopped off the roadway on the left shoulder, according to the report.

But before it finally stopped, Nelson, who was not wearing a seat belt, was ejected out of the top of the car, the THP said. [Read more…]

Updated: Man killed in head-on collision on Andersonville Highway

Posted at 11:33 am December 3, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Note: This story was updated at 2 a.m. Dec. 4.

A Knoxville man died after a head-on collision on Andersonville Highway on Friday night, authorities said.

James D. Gunter, 56, was driving east on the highway, also known as State Route 61, in a 2006 Chevrolet Corvette at about 9:39 p.m. Friday when he crossed the yellow line to pass another vehicle and hit a 2006 Toyota 4Runner head-on in the westbound lane, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol.

Gunter was killed, the THP said in a fatality report.

Gunter is suspected of drinking and drug use, according to the report. Alcohol and drug tests have been requested, which is routine in fatal crashes. [Read more…]

Man pleads guilty to homicide in fatal crash

Posted at 2:31 pm November 4, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Justin Lee Seeber

An Anderson County man pleaded guilty on Monday to criminally negligent homicide in the death of a 19-year-old woman in a single-vehicle crash on US 25W in May 2013.

Justin Lee Seeber, 28, also pleaded guilty in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton to reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon.

The crash on May 28, 2013, killed Amber Elaine Smith of Knoxville, a graduate of Hardin Valley Academy who attended Roane State Community College.

Seeber’s two-year sentence was suspended, and he was placed on state-supervised probation. As a standard offender, his release eligibility was set at 30 percent. If he successfully completes probation, he will not have to go to prison. But if he violates probation, he will have to serve prison time, authorities said. [Read more…]