Category: News

Two suspects in the homicide of Johnny Tesar are now in the Coffee County Jail. Tyler Carter, 20, and Sasha Payton, 33, were arrested in Oklahoma on Tuesday, Dec. 31 after they were found to be driving Tesar’s vehicle. Tesar’s body was discovered in Lakewood Park Monday, Dec. 30. Carter and Payton were returned to the Coffee County Jail late Wednesday afternoon.

Both were held in Oklahoma on charges of theft of a motor vehicle, the same charges they are being held in Coffee County for. Authorities expect more charges are coming against the pair. According to Facebook, Carter and Payton are engaged.

Johnny Tesar was 68 years old.

Manchester residents on Ragsdale Rd. just past the Bush Branch Rd. intersection experienced a brief water outage Tuesday after a water main separated, according to Bryan Pennington with Manchester Water & Sewer Department.

According to Pennington, residents in that area were without water for between thirty minutes and an hour before crews restored water pressure.

“This time of the year when it’s cold and then warms up and it’s dry and then gets dry will cause the ground to move just a little bit and can make a line break a little easier,” explained Pennington.

According to the Tullahoma Police Department, two subjects were allegedly involved in an “incident at a local business” on January 3.

TPD identifies these subjects as “persons of interest.”

The subjects allegedly drove away in a gold Dodge Charger. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact detective Johnny Gore at 931-455-0530 ext. 133 or email jgore@tullahomatn.gov.

The 2020 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival lineup has been released. This will be the 18th year of the festival in Manchester. 

Headliners for this year’s festival include Tool, Lizzo and Tame Impala. Other prominent names on the lineup include Miley Cyrus, Bassnectar, Flume, Oysterhead, Lana del Rey, Vampire Weekend, Nelly. 

The 2020 Bonnaroo festival will take place June 11-14 in Manchester at Great Stage Park.

Murfreesboro police have issued a BOLO for 16-year old Emily Owensby, who is classified as a missing teenager. 

Owensby was last seen around 1:30 p.m. on Dec. 20 in the area of Ohio Court near Bradyville Pike and South Rutherford Blvd. 

According to police, her window was open and she was not there. Authorities say Owensby has left home before but returned soon. 

Anyone with information should contact police at 615-893-1311 or contact Crime Stoppers at 615-893-7867. You can see a photo of Owensby on our website. 

Have you had your flu vaccination yet?

Nationwide, there have been a total of 27 influenza-associated child deaths during the 2019-2020 season, according to Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention reports. Two children have died this season here in the Volunteer State, and one was here in Middle Tennessee.

The CDC recommends a yearly flu vaccine for just about everyone 6 months and older, even when the viruses the vaccine protects against have not changed from the previous season. The reason for this is that a person’s immune protection from vaccination declines over time, so an annual vaccination is needed to get the “optimal” or best protection against the flu.

Flu is unpredictable and seasons can vary. Seasonal flu disease usually peaks between December and March most years, but disease can occur as late as May.

The Winchester Police Department is requesting assistance in identifying a few individuals. You can see the individuals in question and a vehicle in the photos below.  If you recognize the subjects please contact Detective Brian Wilder with the Winchester Police Department at 931-967-3840. Aonymous tips can also be made to Crime Stoppers 931-962-3636. 

Unity Medical Center, in partnership with TriStar Centennial, is proud to announce that Dr. Byron Haitas will be performing consults for cardiac telemedicine at Unity Medical Center in Manchester. 

Unity announced last month that it will employ a state-of-the-art robot that will allow patients at UMC instant access to cardiology specialists while being a patient at Unity. 

UMC is the first hospital to partner with TriStar Centennial for cardiac telemedicine. 

“This partnership with Unity Medical Center and TriStar will allow our patients in this community to have access to quality doctors without having to drive long distances,” stated Martha McCormick, CEO of Unity Medical Center. “We continue to strive for programs like these to ensure that rural healthcare in Coffee County is strong and our residents have access to life-saving care. “For our patients to have instant access to a prestigious specialist such as Dr. Haitas right here in Manchester is a great step forward for our community. We are thankful for him and TriStar Centennial for this partnership.” 

Dr. Haitas joined Centennial Heart in 2015. He has practiced with the First Cardiology at TriStar Centennial Medical Center for 25 years. Upon moving to Nashville, he actually completed a fellowship in cardiology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center where he served as Assistant Professor of Medicine and Interim Director of the Cardiac Catheterization Lab. 

Dr. Haitas graduated Cum Laude from the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa.  After completing his internship and residency at Johannesburg Hospital, he served as research fellow at the University of Oxford & Radcliffe Infirmary in Oxford, England. Dr. Haitas also served as a

Registrar in Internal Medicine and Cardiologist at Johannesburg Hospital and the Head of the Department of Cardiology at JG Sitijdom Hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa. After this he moved to Nashville. 

Unity Medical Center is located at 481 Interstate Dr. in Manchester, TN.

The Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival has announced its lineup for the 2020 festival.

Headliners for this year’s festival include Tool, Lizzo and Tame Impala, with other prominent names including Miley Cyrus, Bassnectar, Flume, Oysterhead, Lana Del Rey, Vampire Weekend, Nelly and others.

The 2020 Bonnaroo festival will take place June 11-14 in Manchester. The complete lineup is below.

Coffee County District Attorney General Craig Northcott says the state medical examiner performed an autopsy on six-week old baby Noah Clark Monday (Jan. 6).

Northcott said a final autopsy report will not be available for several weeks.

Noah Clark’s father, 21-year-old Gavin Clark, was arrested over the weekend and charged with aggravated child abuse – charges that were upgraded to first degree murder after Noah passed away Sunday morning (Jan. 5). Northcott said the first degree murder charges do not include premeditation, but did not rule out making additional charges pending further investigation.

Authorities report that Noah Clark was taken to Tennova Harton Hospital Saturday (Jan. 4) afternoon for what the parents described as a “fall.” Doctors at Harton alerted Manchester Police Department officials that the injuries were more severe than that of a fall. Noah was transported to Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital, where he passed away.

“This father has been charged with causing the death of his six-week old son through blunt force trauma, which resulted in a fatal closed-head injury,” Northcott said Sunday. “Further, he negligently failed to seek immediate medical assistance for injuries to his infant son.”