Josh Peterson

Coffee County Sheriff’s Department authorities are asking for the public’s help to find a Polaris Ranger XP900 side-by-side that was stolen from the Pea Ridge Rd. area early Friday morning.

Anyone with information about this stolen Ranger is encouraged to contact CCSD investigator Sgt. Laura Nettles at 931-570-4425.

UPDATE AS OF 10:30 A.M. JANUARY 27

A Franklin County man is in custody after allegedly shooting his wife and his two children Saturday afternoon.

Franklin County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Chris Guess told Thunder Radio News that deputies responded to a call of domestic violence at 1620 Vernon Ridge Rd. at approximately 4:30 p.m. Saturday.

“While deputies were responding, the situation escalated with shots fired,” explained Guess.

Upon arrival on the scene, deputies entered the residence and found Holly Raquel Maxwell (age 46),  on the floor of the residence.

While processing the scene, authorities made contact with Christopher Maxwell, (age 47) in an adjacent milk barn, where he was taken into custody.

A 13-year old juvenile at the scene was transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for treatment of gunshot wounds, and a 14-year old juvenile was transported to Erlanger Barones Hospital in Chattanooga for treatment of gunshot wounds.

After being transported to Southern Tennessee Regional Health Systems for treatment of chest pains, Christopher Maxwell was booked into the Franklin County Jail on charges of first degree murder, homicide, criminal attempt and aggravated child abuse and neglect. He is being held with no bond. His initial court date is set for Thursday, March 5.

In addition to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department, other responding agencies included the Lexie Crossroads Volunteer Fire Department and the A&E Emergency Services.

Original story, posted Saturday night, Jan. 25, 2020

A Franklin County man is in custody after allegedly shooting his wife and two children Saturday afternoon.

Franklin County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Chris Guess told Thunder Radio News that deputies responded to a call of domestic violence at 1620 Vernon Ridge Rd., at approximately 4:30 p.m. Saturday.

“While deputies were responding, the situation escalated with shots fired,” explained Guess.

According to guess, the suspect’s wife, an adult female, is deceased. A 13-year old juvenile was transported  to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for treatment of gunshot wounds, and a 14-year old juvenile was transported to Erlanger Barones Hospital in Chattanooga for treatment of gunshot wounds.

According to Guess, the suspect is in custody and receiving medical treatment. Guess did not release the name of the suspect or the victim’s. The Franklin County Sheriff’s Department is investigating.

In addition to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department, other responding agencies included the Lexie Crossroads Volunteer Fire Department and the A &E Emergency Services.

CapStar Financial Holdings, Inc. (“CapStar”) (NASDAQ: CSTR), the parent company of CapStar Bank, announced today the signing of definitive merger agreements with FCB Corporation (“FCB”), its wholly owned subsidiary The First National Bank of Manchester (“FNBM”), and The Bank of Waynesboro (“BOW”) providing for FCB to merge with and into CapStar and for FNBM and BOW to merge with and into CapStar Bank.  As of December 31, 2019, FCB and BOW had total combined assets of $467 million. Upon completion of the transaction, CapStar is expected to have total consolidated assets of approximately $2.5 billion.

“We are pleased to join forces with these outstanding organizations whom have proudly served their communities for over 115 years and rank among Tennessee’s highest performers on Net Interest Margin and Return on Assets,” said Timothy K. Schools, President and CEO of CapStar. “This strategic partnership will mutually benefit each of the companies’ employees, customers, and shareholders.  Importantly, the combination continues to strengthen CapStar’s funding capabilities while providing more granular and higher-yielding loan opportunities; deepens our local banking efforts in dynamic Middle Tennessee offering access into the fast-growing Rutherford County market; and creates additional scale allowing us to serve larger relationships, diversify our risks, and increase shareholder value and liquidity.  We look forward to working with First National Bank and Bank of Waynesboro employees and serving their customers and communities.”

Under the terms of the merger agreements, FCB and BOW shareholders will receive 3,634,218 CapStar common shares and $26.4 million in cash, subject to certain adjustments, totaling $85.1 million based on the closing price of CapStar’s common stock on January 22, 2020.  CapStar expects the transaction to be approximately 5% and 14% accretive to earnings per common share in 2020 and 2021, respectively, and tangible book value per share dilution that is anticipated to be earned back in less than three years. Pending regulatory and shareholder approvals and the satisfaction of certain other customary closing conditions, the acquisition is expected to be finalized in late second or early third quarter of 2020.

“We are excited to partner with CapStar”, said Timothy L. Spry, President and Chief Executive Officer of The First National Bank of Manchester. “In their recent partnership with Athens Federal, CapStar demonstrated a deep commitment to their employees, customers, and local community.  We believe this combination will better align our resources, expand our product offerings and technology solutions, and enhance our financial strength allowing us to better serve our markets.”

“CapStar is the very best partner for us to create the most trusted community bank in the communities we serve,” said William B. Bryant, President and CEO of The Bank of Waynesboro. “With Ken Webb and other members of their team being from South Central, Tennessee, CapStar has unique local knowledge of our markets and will help us continue to provide outstanding customer service to our existing customers as well as expand our reach to new customers in bigger and better ways.”

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc. served as financial advisor and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen, & Katz served as legal advisor to CapStar.  ProBank Austin served as financial advisor and Butler Snow LLP served as legal advisor to FCB.  Mercer Capital rendered a fairness opinion to the special committee of the board of directors of BOW.

In addition to the information contained within this press release, an investor presentation has been posted to CapStar’s website (www.capstarbank.com).

Webcast and Conference Call Information

CapStar Financial Holdings, Inc. will host a conference call to discuss the announced transactions and company’s financial results at 8:30 a.m. CT on Friday, January 24, 2020. An online replay will be available approximately an hour following the conclusion of the live broadcast.

About CapStar Financial Holdings, Inc.

CapStar Financial Holdings, Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee and operates primarily through its wholly owned subsidiary, CapStar Bank.  CapStar Bank, with assets of $2.03 billion, provides a relationship-based banking experience to small to mid-sized private businesses, professionals, and individuals. Focused on delivering superior flexibility, responsiveness, and customer service, CapStar serves customers through highly-skilled employees, digital channels, as well as 13 locations in seven Tennessee counties.  The bank was recognized by Greenwich Associates, an international marketing firm, as a national Customer Experience Leader for U.S. Commercial Small Business Banking, U.S. Commercial Middle Market Banking, and U.S. Retail Banking.

For more information about CapStar, please visit www.capstarbank.com.

About The First National Bank of Manchester

The First National Bank of Manchester, with assets of $292 million, was chartered on August 2, 1900 and has operated continuously in Coffee County. The bank’s primary mission has been to serve the banking needs of its local community, and this mission continues to be the primary driving force behind the bank today.  Today, it operates four locations across Cannon, Coffee, and Rutherford Counties.

For more information about The First National Bank of Manchester, please visit www.fnbmwm.com.

About The Bank of Waynesboro

The Bank of Waynesboro, with assets of $175 million, was chartered on February 16, 1904 and has operated continuously in Wayne County. The bank’s core values center around a strong commitment to customer service and extensive contributions to a vast number of community activities.  Today, it operates five locations in Lawrence and Wayne Counties.

For more information about The Bank of Waynesboro, please visit www.thebankofwaynesboro.com.

Coffee County Schools and Manchester City Schools are both closed Friday, Jan. 24 and Monday, Jan. 27 due to widespread illness in both school systems that is keeping students and teachers at home.

ESP for both school systems is also closed in an attempt to slow the spread of disease from student to student.

According to Dr. Charles Lawson, director of Coffee County Schools, principals at each school are coordinating with custodial staff to disinfect each school during the four-day shutdown.

Dr. Joey Vaughn, director of Manchester City Schools, said his staff has a plan in place to thoroughly disinfect each building.

“We work daily to make sure our facilities are in great shape for our students,” said Vaughn. “Hopefully the combination of schools being closed and time for additional precautions will help shut down the spread of some of the illnesses going through the community.”

According to a story from the Manchester Times, the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury is investigating an issue of a Manchester alderman casting a vote and participating in discussion where a conflict of interest may have been present.

Alderman Bill Nickels, who also serves as the city’s appointed vice mayor, voted on January 7 to replace Sequoyah Group (which served as the city’s insurance broker since 2015) and voted to replace them with Lester, Greene, McCord and Thoma. But Sequoyah Group ownership claims that Lester, Greene, McCord and Thoma actually owns a portion of Bill Nickels’ insurance agency – Nickels Insurance, which has an office location in downtown Manchester.  According to Sequoyah Group ownership, Sequoyah was the lowest bidder of four possible bids.

According to the Manchester Times, Nickels responded that he voted and participated in the discussion because of his insurance knowledge.

Thunder Radio reached out to Mr. Nickels for response but has not received one at the time of this story.

After almost three years of planning, anticipation and delays, contractors expect to break ground on the Love’s Travel Stop and Country Store off of Interstate-24 exit 117 sometime in mid to late February of 2020.

When Love’s officials originally announced the project in the summer of 2017, the anticipated cost was to be $20 million with the expectation of bringing 40 full-time jobs. There will be a Hardee’s restaurant going in with the store, according to local officials. Coffee County Mayor Gary Cordell is excited about the prospect of tax revenues the new business will bring to the county’s coffers.

“We anticipate that this will be a good amount of sales tax dollars generated for the county,” explained Cordell.

After months of back and forth to gain approval for the project from the county commission due to resident concerns of illegal activities related to the truck stop (such as human trafficking, prostitution and other drug-related crimes), construction was then delayed because of what Cordell described as a “wetlands issue” on the property.

The Love’s Travel Stop will be located in Coffee County off of exit 117 of Interstate 24 on an approximate 20-acre plot of land.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency has issued a scam alert when it comes to hunting and fishing license purchases. There is a new bogus website that appears when you Google Tennessee fishing license.

The scam website appears as an advertisement during a Google Search for “Tennessee Fishing License.” The site then allows you to enter your personal information, such as name, date of birth, social security number, driver’s license number, phone number, email address and residential address. It gathers this info, but never asks for payment for the license.

This website appears to have been created outside the United States, and the TWRA is working to get the site shut down. TWRA encourages anyone who has submitted information through this scamming site to monitor or freeze their credit.

The only legitimate place to purchase a hunting and fishing license online in the State of Tennessee is at https://gooutdoorstennessee.com/.

State Senator Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma) announced this week that she has signed on as a prime co-sponsor of Senate Joint Resolution 648 which would add Tennessee’s Right to Work law to the state constitution. The Right to Work statute, established in 1947, protects the rights of those who choose not to join a union. It provides workers cannot be hired or fired based on their affiliation with any labor union or employee organization.

The bill advanced out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday by a vote of 7 to 2 with Sen. Bowling’s support.

“This resolution allows the people of Tennessee to preserve the rights of workers to make their own decisions in the workplace,” said Sen. Bowling.  “It ensures that our right to work status will remain in place into the future.”

Twenty-seven other states have Right to Work laws, and nine of those have passed constitutional amendments, including neighboring states Arkansas, Mississippi, and Alabama. The Alabama amendment passed most recently in 2016. Another neighbor, Virginia, is presently considering repealing its Right to Work statute. A constitutional amendment would offer greater protection for workers against such repeal efforts.

“The Tennessee Chamber and our business community has remained strongly supportive of our status as a Right to Work state which is a key component establishing the Volunteer state as friendly to business,” said Bradley Jackson, President and CEO of the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce and Industry. “Embedding Right to Work permanently in our constitution sends a strong message moving forward that Tennessee is and always will be ready for business.”

If passed by the General Assembly in 2020, SJR 648 would need to pass by a two-thirds majority during the 2021 or 2022 legislative session in order to appear on the ballot for a statewide referendum in November 2022. The amendment would become part of the state constitution if adopted by a majority vote in the governor’s election.

There is also strong public support for the resolution. An October 2019 Beacon Center survey reported that 68 percent of Tennesseans favor the Right to Work policy, while 13 percent are opposed, and 19 percent remain undecided.