Oak Ridge Today

Several mailboxes vandalized, suspects facing charges

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Information from WYSH Radio

Charges are pending against two juveniles and an adult for vandalizing mailboxes in Anderson County.

Over several days last week, a number of mailboxes were vandalized on East Wolf Valley Road, Davidson Hollow Road, Chestnut Ridge Road, and Heiskell Road.

Residents on Thursday were able to provide deputies with a description of the suspect vehicle, which was pulled over later that night. Two juveniles and an adult were identified as the suspects in the vandalism, and charges against all three are pending. [Read more…]

Anderson County budget process moving along

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Anderson County Courthouse

The Anderson County Courthouse on Main Street in Clinton is pictured above.

Information from WYSH Radio

As WYSH reported last week, the Anderson County Commission’s Budget Committee has approved County Mayor Terry Frank’s budget proposal for the fiscal year that begins on July 1. The proposed $25 million general fund budget keeps the property tax rate at current levels but does not include pay raises for county workers.

Previously, the budget committee had recommended keeping the funding for all county general fund offices at their current levels, and officials said that the budget does include provisions for a projected half-percent increase in the cost of health insurance and state-mandated salary increases for certain county officeholders.

When the various county departments submitted their initial budget requests, the total was about $2 million out of balance but “with understanding and help, we whittled that down,” according to Frank’s summary of the budget process released late last week. [Read more…]

Close to 800 vote early in Anderson County in first two days

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Anderson County Early Voting

As represented by three signs here, the Anderson County primary election includes three candidates for mayor, the incumbent, Terry Frank, left; her Republican opponent, Commissioner Zach Bates, right; and Democrat Jim Hackworth, center, a former state representative.

Early voting started Wednesday in Anderson County, and close to 800 residents cast ballots in the first two days, according to WYSH Radio in Clinton.

The early voting is for the May 6 Democratic and Republican primaries in Anderson County.

WYSH said 410 people voted Wednesday, and 378 voted Thursday. The two-day total was 788.

The Republican primary has been more popular, with 645 votes cast so far. That primary features four contested races: mayor, sheriff, chancellor, and juvenile court judge. About 82 percent of the ballots cast have been in the GOP primary.

There is only one contested race in the Democratic primary, and that’s for juvenile court judge. One hundred forty-three voters, or about 18 percent of them, cast ballots in the Democratic primary on Wednesday and Thursday, WYSH said. [Read more…]

Rescuers locate trio stranded overnight on Windrock Mountain trail

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Rescuers have located three people stranded overnight on Windrock Mountain near Oliver Springs.

The trio—ages 19, 22, and 24 years old—were stuck in vehicles on a trail and called Anderson County 911, authorities said.

“Our dispatch mapped the coordinates and forwarded the information to the rescue squad,” Anderson County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said.

He said all three were located. The two men were checked out by EMS at the scene, and the woman was taken to Methodist Medical Center as a precaution. [Read more…]

Kentucky man avoids serious injury when hit by car

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Information from WYSH Radio

A Kentucky man escaped serious injury when he was hit by a car Sunday evening in Clinton.

Clinton police officers were called to the intersection of Hillvale and Seivers Boulevard shortly after 7 p.m. Sunday after a car driven by Jade Richardson of Jellico struck 54-year-old James Thompson of Morehead, Ky. Richardson told police she had been headed north on Hillvale near the entrance to the Hampton Inn when the car in front of her suddenly swerved, revealing Thompson in the middle of the road. She tried to avoid contact but hit Thompson with the left front side of her car. A witness corroborated that version of events.

Thompson was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center by ambulance for treatment of leg injuries, and Richardson was not hurt. No citations were issued.

Clinton Fire Department expansion to cut response times

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Information from WYSH Radio

Workers are building an expansion of the Clinton Fire Department’s headquarters that will create a place where three on-duty firefighters can stay during their shifts, including a sleeping area, a kitchen, a day room, and both men’s and women’s bathrooms. The expansion will also create a new office for the Fire Department.

Officials said that expanding the headquarters and creating space for on-call firefighters to remain on the premises should cut down on response times on the western side of the city.

Clinton Fire Chief Archie Brummitt said the department conducted a study of fire hall locations with the Municipal Technical Advisory Service—or MTAS—several months ago that determined that the majority of the calls answered by the department are centered in and around Clinton’s downtown area. [Read more…]

Clinton Fire Department expanding HQ

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Information from WYSH Radio

If you have driven on Hicks Street in Clinton, you have no doubt seen the construction going on behind City Hall.

Workers are constructing an expansion of the Clinton Fire Department’s headquarters that will create a place where three on-duty firefighters can stay during their shifts, including a sleeping area, a kitchen, a day room, and both men’s and women’s bathrooms. In addition, the expansion will create a new office for the Fire Department. Officials say that expanding the headquarters and creating space for on-call firefighters to remain on the premises should cut down on response times on the western side of the city. [Read more…]

TDOT: Lewallen Bridge in Clinton slated for replacement

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Hon. William Everette Lewallen Memorial Bridge

Pictured above is the Hon. William Everette Lewallen Memorial Bridge on Clinch Avenue near downtown Clinton.

Information from WYSH Radio

The Tennessee Department of Transportation will be replacing the Lewallen Bridge—known as “the green bridge” to locals—that connects Clinton and South Clinton on Highway 25W within the next couple of years.

Clinton city officials met last Friday with TDOT representatives to learn more about the project and its tentative schedule. TDOT spokesman Mark Nagi in an email said that the new bridge will be realigned to the park side of the bridge, which is upstream from the current bridge, so that the state can avoid “the costly acquisition of several homes” downstream of the bridge in the other side. [Read more…]

AC man accidentally shoots own hand

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Information from WYSH Radio

An Anderson County man accidentally shot himself in the hand Sunday night when he tried to force the wrong caliber of ammunition into his pistol.

Carlie Indmon Phillips, 45, sustained the wound Sunday night at a home on Hillbilly Way and was taken to Methodist Medical Center for treatment of an injury to his left index finger, according to an Anderson County Sheriff’s Department report.

Phillips had been called to his sister’s nearby home by his sister, who thought she had seen a prowler on the property. He grabbed his .357 Magnum revolver and went to her house but had no ammunition for the gun. His sister gave him .38 caliber ammo, and when he tried to force the round into the weapon by tapping it with his pocketknife, the round went off, striking him in the hand. [Read more…]

Man facing charges in high-speed chase

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Information from WYSH Radio

A Powell man has been arrested on charges stemming from a high-speed nighttime pursuit that spanned two counties earlier this month.

Larry Eugene Ward Jr., 33, is facing a slew of charges including reckless endangerment, reckless driving, evading arrest, and a host of traffic violations. An Oliver Springs Police Department officer tried to pull Ward over at night on Nov. 2 for a routine violation, but Ward allegedly sped off in his Chevy Cruze, turned off the vehicle’s headlights, and proceeded to lead officers on a pursuit that reached speeds of more than 100 miles an hour, passing cars on double yellow lines, and taking hills in the wrong lane. [Read more…]

WYSH: Blind man’s custom-made bicycle stolen

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Information from WYSH Radio

A custom-made bicycle that allows a legally blind man to get around town was stolen from outside an Oak Ridge bookstore last week, and police are investigating.

The theft occurred Thursday outside the Books-A-Million in Oak Ridge, and victim Tim Collins, who suffers from macular degeneration, said it is his only means of transportation.

Police were able to dust the man’s helmet and flag, which the thieves left behind, for fingerprints and their investigation is ongoing. The bike is valued at $1,800. [Read more…]

WYSH: Pills stolen, ex-wife choked

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Information from WYSH Radio

A Clinton man was arrested Thursday and charged with choking his ex-wife into unconsciousness after allegedly stealing prescription medication from her.

Jason Hobbs, 30, was at his ex-wife’s house on Thursday babysitting her children, according to the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department. When she returned to the home, she told deputies that she had found Hobbs asleep on her couch and discovered that more than 50 Xanax pills were missing from her room, which had been ransacked.

She said that when she woke him up to confront him, Hobbs choked her until she was unconscious. Hobbs was arrested and charged with aggravated domestic assault.