On Monday, the Coffee County Anti-Drug Coalition along with the Manchester City Police Department visited the Juniors & Seniors at Coffee County Central High School for a Prom Drug Awareness Rally. Manchester City Police Chief Mark Yother & the Coffee County Anti-Drug Coalition’s Christina Merino pointed out the dangers in substance abuse, especially on Prom & Graduation night, and they encouraged students attending Prom to take a stand against these illegal activities. The Anti-Drug Coalition presented every Junior and Senior at CCCHS with an optional pledge at the rally.

All students who sign and return their pledge to abstain from Drug & Alcohol use before the deadline today at 3pm, will be eligible to win one of 30 prizes donated by local area businesses including free hair updos, prom photos, and much more. Along with students, parents were also encouraged to sign their Juniors’ or Seniors’ petition in order for students to receive an opportunity to win extra prizes. CCCHS’s Principal Joey Vaughn stated that “One of the goals at CCCHS is to make sure that every student is safe, happy, respectful, and that they realize accountability is one of life’s most important virtues.” Catch a glimpse of Monday’s Prom Drug Awareness Rally for yourself during the Thunder TV News Video online at www.WMSRradio.com.

Monday was a very busy day for the area law enforcement. The Manchester Police Department conducted a roundup of people that have been indicted by the Coffee Court system on drug charges. The operation is called “Slow the Flow”. The day got started at Coffee County High School with an assembly in the gym. Manchester Police Chief Mark Yother spoke to the junior and seniors about the prom that will be held on Friday night at the school. Yother told WMSR News that this operation is about education and enforcement. The chief highly encouraged the students to be drug and alcohol free. The Coffee County Anti-Drug Coalition was also in attendance at the school asking students to sign a pledge to be alcohol and drug free. After meeting with the students, arrests started to occur throughout the county. The

largest amount of people taken into custody at one location were seven made at a local manufacturer in the Coffee County Industrial Park. After a joint effort between M-Tek and Manchester Police the seven arrests were made while the people were working at M-Tek Monday night. The operation has 120 cases and a total of 81 defendants. During the “Slow the Flow” operation officers took $100,000 worth of drugs off the street. Drugs included Oxycodone, Hydrocodone, Meth, Meth Labs, Cocaine, Marijuana, Morphine, Xanax plus vehicle and cash seizures. Manchester Police was assisted by the Coffee County Sheriff’s department, Tullahoma Police, Office of Inspector General, parole and probations officers and the District Attorney’s office.
Names of those arrested so far in the roundup; John Crawford, Darra Tinnel, Jimmy Stewart Jr., Lisa Keele, James Edwards, Dominique Lawrence, Bryan Phillips, Karen Rader, Robert Rader, Shelly Meeks, Michael Brown, Wendy Sloan, Timothy Solomon, Donny Cole, Donald Brewer, Robert Miller Jr., Terry Honea, James Wells, Robert Glenn Martin, Michael Anthony Muro, Jammie Watson, Ashley Chrisman, Candace Stewart, Francis Wise, Debra Copestick, Theresa Schodenberg and Danny Edwards.

Negotiations are still ongoing in the case against the former director of the Bedford County Emergency Communications District accused of theft.
Cathey D. Mathis’ case has been passed until May 16, after defense attorney Greg Reed told Circuit Court Judge Lee Russell that preliminary discussions are taking place with Coffee County Assistant District Attorney Felicia Walkup.
Reed said there “was a possibility of some resolution,” but they would like more time for discussions.
Russell asked if he should get a judge from Nashville to hear the case, since he can only accept a plea in the matter, and not as a contested case.
Walkup said if they could have an additional month for discussions, there may be a resolution in the case. Russell advised if the case goes to trial, another judge will have to be selected.
The former director was charged with theft of property over $10,000 by direct indictment following an investigation by the Coffee County District Attorney’s Office. The local office would prosecute if the case goes to court in order to avoid any conflict of interest with local court or law enforcement officials.
In April of 2013, an investigative state audit charged Mathis with $46,807 in undocumented or “questionable purchases.” (Shelbyville Times-Gazette)

The bonds that children develop with their parents early on can be fundamental to their success in life, but the latest research finds many babies and toddlers are missing out, and that means problems.
A new analysis concludes that 40 percent of children are not getting that needed secure attachment, which family therapist Susan Stiffelman says comes through parents being attuned to their baby.
“That means relating and responding and interacting with them in such a way that says ‘I’m with you,’” she explains. “’We’re connected. Your needs matter. They can be understood and acted upon.’ And it sort of sets a template for a child going through life.”
The report says those children from birth to age three who do not form strong bonds with their mother or father are more likely to suffer from aggression, defiance and hyperactivity as they get older.
Stiffelman says that lack of a loving bond can also impact other areas for children, including health and educational achievement.
“Children are very distracted by emotional events that are in their home life or between them and their parents,” she stresses. “So, a child who is sent off to school by a parent who criticizes and berates them and there’s no sense of warmth, these kids don’t do well in school because they’re distracted all day long.”
While some may think that the need for a loving bond is most important for girls, the report finds that the behavior of boys is actually more affected by early parenting.
“Even though we think of boys as much tougher and more durable and hearty and thicker-skinned, boys it’s thought have a greater vulnerability to injuries of attachment,” Stiffelman points out. “And so we do see that in more acting out behavior when a little boy is not feeling securely attached and connected.”
The Baby Bonds review from the Sutton Trust also says that those children without strong attachment to their parents are also at higher risk for depression, family instability and poverty.