Category: News

National Health Care Corporation has announced plans to build a new $10.75 million state of the art healthcare facility in Tullahoma. The new skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility will be located on Cedar Lane and will have 90 beds. At full operation the facility will employ over 100 employees. NHC plans to begin construction on the 62,000 square foot facility in the next few days. And construction is expected to take approximately 12 months. The facility will have a payroll of $5.3 million.

A Tullahoma woman was arrested Tuesday after she was indicted by the grand jury on charges of aggravated burglary and theft over $1,000. Melynda Gail Sons, 40, of Oakwood Road, Tullahoma, was indicted by the June term of the Coffee County Grand Jury on the charges. Sons is accused of taking tools from a Broadway Electric Company that was parked at Kroger on North Jackson Street. According to the indictments Sons took a band saw, jigsaw, fiber optics test kit and a cordless hammer drill. The total value of the items taken was more than $10,000. She is being held in the Coffee County Jail under a bond of $22,500 and is to appear in Coffee County Circuit Court Sept. 17.

Police are still looking for the person responsible for the abuse for a dog in Warren County.
Corona the dog was found last week beaten, shot and left for dead.
Volunteers rushed the boxer-mix to a doctor and despite her extensive injuries; her doctor says she could make a full recovery.
The humane Society is offering an $8,000 reward for information about the abuse.
If you have information about this case, you can contact the Warren County sheriff’s office at their number (931) 473-7863.

Coffee County Sheriff Steve Graves

With the help of the Department of Homeland Security, crime in Coffee and Franklin counties has gone down. According to the TBI, the total number of crimes committed in Coffee County fell seven percent since 2003, while property crimes are down 20 percent. Since then Coffee County has received several grants.
Coffee County Sheriff Steve Graves said that the grants help our officers to have the information they need at their fingertips. Thirty percent of that funding goes to radio equipment. For officers protecting and serving, communication is the key.

Electricity rates for Tennessee Valley Authority customers will not be increased in the coming fiscal year. TVA’s board of directors voted Thursday to approve an $11.2 billion budget for the upcoming fiscal year that begins Oct 1 and does not include any rate hikes. TVA chief executive officer Tom Kilgore also announced at the meeting that he will be retiring. TVA’s board of directors appointed Kilgore as CEO in 2006. Kilgore, who said he was in the fourth quarter of life and wanted to pursue other things, said he preferred to leave in four to six months but would wait until the board appoints his successor.

Bonnie L. Wilder Mills

Two Coffee County residents have been charged with TennCare fraud in separate cases, both involving prescription drugs.
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) announced the arrest of Bonnie L. Wilder Mills, 34, and Adam J. Lane, 21, both of Manchester. The arrests were assisted by the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office and the Manchester Police Department.
An indictment charges Mills with one count of TennCare fraud, in connection with using TennCare benefits to obtain Vyvanse, a stimulant used to treat attention deficit disorder, while planning to sell a portion of the drug.

Adam J. Lane

Adam Lane is charged in an indictment with one count of TennCare fraud for using TennCare benefits to pay a portion of the cost for a prescription of Adderall, an amphetamine similar to Vyvanse. Charges say Lane also planned to sell a portion of the prescription.
“These kinds of prescription drugs are extremely beneficial when used to treat the disorders they’re intended to treat,” Inspector General Deborah Y. Faulkner said. “But prescription drugs become extremely harmful when they’re sold on the street to anyone in our communities, and we are out to stop that activity when TennCare is involved.”
TennCare fraud is a Class E felony, carrying a sentence of up to two years in prison. District Attorney General C. Michael Layne will prosecute these cases.
Through the OIG Cash for Tips Program established by the Legislature, Tennesseans can get cash rewards for TennCare fraud tips that lead to convictions. Anyone can report suspected TennCare fraud by calling 1-800-433-3982 toll-free from anywhere in Tennessee, or log on to www.tn.gov/tnoig and follow the prompts that read “Report TennCare Fraud.

A female Fort Campbell solider was injured Tuesday around noon when her Jeep Liberty overturned near mile marker 104 on I-24. According to Tennessee Highway Patrol Sgt. Larry Fraley, the Jeep rolled, and she was transported to a Manchester hospital. The female driver was the only person in the vehicle and, the Jeep was the only automobile involved.

Kenneth L. Todd

The Franklin Co. Sheriff’s Office is attempting to locate Kenneth L. Todd. Todd is currently under indictment for fraud, forgery and theft over $500.00. Todd allegedly generated checks via a computer carrying the name of the Franklin County School Board and has passed them on more than one occasion in this area. Todd was last seen Wednesday August the 8th at Ashley’s Market on highway 64. Investigators also believe Todd has committed the same offense in Georgia, Alabama and parts of Florida. Todd is believed to be a white/male approximately 6’2 tall and approximately 205lbs. and is possibly driving a dark colored Dodge Caravan with an Alabama license tag. Anyone having information concerning Todd’s location may contact Investigator Nick Watson at the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office 931-962-0123 ext. 2112 or Crime Stoppers at 931-962-INFO.

Between 1998 and 2010, 32 children in Tennessee died from heat-related causes, with 13 of those fatalities occurring in vehicles. Last month alone, three children died. As the searing heat of summer continues, the Tennessee Department of Health is reminding residents and visitors to increase their efforts to prevent deaths from heat stroke in cars, trucks and SUVs.

Heat stroke can occur when a person’s temperature exceeds 104 degrees F and his or her ability to handle heat is overwhelmed. The first symptoms include dizziness, disorientation and sluggishness, followed by loss of consciousness, hallucinations and rapid heartbeat. When the body’s core temperature reaches 107 degrees F, internal organs often stop functioning.

A study by the San Francisco State University Geoscience Department looked at how quickly heat can rise in a vehicle. To investigate heat build-up, researchers used a dark blue mid-size sedan with a grey interior, with the windows slightly cracked open and ambient temperatures between 72 and 96 degrees F. The temperature increase inside the car was 19 degrees in 10 minutes, 29 degrees in 20 minutes, 34 degrees in 30 minutes, 43 degrees in 60 minutes and between 45 and 50 degrees in two hours.

The Tennessee Department of Health offers these safety suggestions to prevent hyperthermia deaths:

• Never leave a child alone in a vehicle.
• If you see a child left unattended in a hot vehicle, call 9-1-1 immediately.
• Place a stuffed animal in the child safety seat. When you place your child in the seat, move the stuffed animal to the front seat with you. The stuffed toy will remind you about the child in the seat.
• Always lock your car to make sure children cannot get inside while it is unattended.
• If a child is missing, check swimming pools and bodies of water first, then nearby cars and trucks, including trunks or other spaces that appear to be locked.
• Place your briefcase, purse or keys beside the child safety seat, so you have to go to the seat before leaving the vehicle and entering a building.
• Tape a reminder note to your dashboard; the National Weather Service motto is excellent for this: “Beat the heat, check the back seat!”

If anyone ever sees a baby alone in a hot car, don’t be concerned a parent might get mad about you dialing 9-1-1. The parent might consider you a lifesaver.

Law enforcement officials across the mid-state have come together with one common goal: keep impaired drivers off the road. The “Booze It & Lose It” campaign kicked off Tuesday in Rutherford County. It runs through Labor Day. But it’s not just drivers under the influence of alcohol officers are looking out for. “Impaired driving isn’t just alcohol anymore is it. Drug impaired driving is an epidemic in the state of Tennessee,” said Kendell Poole with the Governor’s Highway Safety Office. “And thanks to Governor Haslam and the legislature of Tennessee, they’re making it easier for us to prosecute drug-impaired drivers across the state of Tennessee.” Officials said more than 30-percent of this year’s traffic fatalities involved an impaired driver.