Category: News

Female Charged in Stabbing Incident

Teresa Marie Short jail intake photo

A Manchester woman was arrested on charges of aggravated assault following a stabbing incident.
Teresa Marie Short, 33, of Geneva Road, Manchester was charged with aggravated assault and violation of probation after she allegedly stabbed a man while at the Royal Inn in Manchester on Expressway Drive.
On Nov. 23 Manchester Police Officer Jason Fowler was dispatched to the motel but located the victim who had walked to the Subway on Hillsboro Boulevard. He told the officer that Short stabbed him during an altercation. Warrants state that the victim had approximately a one-inch stab wound to the chest. The unidentified person was flown to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for treatment of the wound.
Short was later located by Coffee County Sheriff’s deputies on Noland Road in Manchester. She was arrested on the assault charge. Her bond was set at $115,000. She appeared in Coffee County General Sessions Court Nov. 28.

Broadband Service coming to Pocahontas Community

Ben Lomand Connect has received a $1.5 million federal grant, which would allow the company to extend broadband service into the rural Pocahontas area in Northern Coffee County, according to CEO of Ben Lomand Lisa Cope.
Ben Lomand, which is a McMinnville-based company, providing broadband, digital TV, phone and home security, applied for the grant in March.
The USDA announced that Ben Lomand was chosen as a $1.5 million winner for the grant under the Community-Oriented Connectivity Broadband Grant Program administered by the Rural Utilities Service.
Ben Lomand will construct state-of-the-art fiber to the premise facilities that will serve 179 customers. The hope is to have people connected by late summer 2018. (Tullahoma News)

Woman Dies in Car Crash in Tullahoma

A Fayetteville woman died of injuries sustained in a head on crash on Nov. 22 on Wilson Avenue in Tullahoma.
According to a report by Tullahoma Police Sgt. Cody Brandon, officers had been notified that a Nissan Rogue was headed into Tullahoma from Moore County. Moore County communications had notified Tullahoma Police that the vehicle was entering Coffee County driving recklessly and erratically. Officers were also advised that the Nissan was striking objects with the vehicle. A witness reportedly told the officer that the Nissan was traveling at a high rate of speed in the west bound lane.
On Wilson Avenue, the Nissan which was operated by Lori Grace Warren, 36, of Shields Hollow Road, Fayetteville collided head on with a 2017 Toyota operated by Janice Y. Harder, 66, of Lynchburg.
When Officer Brandon arrived, he found Warren trapped in her vehicle and Harder was outside of her vehicle.
Warren was transported by helicopter to Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga where she died. Harder was transported to Tennova—Harton for treatment.

Grundy County School Board Member Arrested

Kasey Anderson

A Grundy County school board member was arrested Monday for prompting a lockdown of the entire school system.
Sheriff Clint Shrum says school board member Kasey Anderson was arrested over a text message that led to a soft lockdown Monday morning.
The details of the text message have not been released.
Anderson is charged with false reports as a result of the incident.
The Grundy County school board workshop session scheduled for Tuesday evening was canceled.

October Revenue Report for Tennessee

Photo: (OTAPHotos/Flickr)

Tennessee revenues for October exceeded revenues from the same month a year ago, but were marginally less than the budgeted estimate. Finance and Administration Commissioner Larry Martin reported that October revenues were $1.0 billion, which is $31.1 million more than October of last year and $1.3 million less than the budgeted estimate. The growth rate for October was 3.16%.
Gasoline and motor fuel revenues increased the most by 36.82% and they were $7.9 million more than the budgeted estimate of $90.3 million.

Inn at Fall Creek Falls to be Rebuilt

The Inn at Fall Creek Falls… Photo from state parks website

Plans to rebuild guest lodging at Tennessee’s largest and most-visited state park have been approved.
The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports the State Building Commission approved the plans for Fall Creek Falls State Park. Work at the 26,000-acre park is expected to take one and a half to two years.
Two existing facilities are to be torn down, and a single inn built with roughly 85 rooms along with a new restaurant and conference center. The state Department of Environment and Conservation would continue to operate the inn and restaurant.
State Sen. Janice Bowling from Tullahoma says she favored an original renovation plan that would cost at least $12 million compared to department commissioner Bob Martineau’s $25 million estimate to rebuild.
Bowling said Friday she understands the project may start in May.

Update–Thankgiving Not Happy for Manchester Man

Nathan Lamont Butler jail intake photo

On Thanksgiving night Coffee County Deputy Lee Marcom made contact with a vehicle on Shelly Road in Manchester that had a brake light out.
The deputy states in the warrant that the driver identified as Nathan Lamont Butler age 38 of Geneva Boynton Rd, Manchester ran a stop sign and continued at a high rate of speed. Marcom turned on his blue lights in an attempt to stop the driver. Butler then allegedly continued at a high rate of speed placing the passenger in the vehicle at risk of bodily harm.
Marcom states that the subject wrecked his vehicle on Boynton Valley Road and fled on foot attempting to evade arrest. Deputies located Butler after he apparently ran behind a residence and laid down beside the back porch.
After a search of the man, deputies allegedly found .63 grams of a white crystal-like substance believed to be methamphetamine, 6 and a half Xanax pills and one Valium pill. Deputies also allegedly found digital scales and plastic baggies on the subject as well. Butler was also found to have active warrants for his arrest.
His total amount of charges included stalking, 2 counts of evading, illegal possession of a weapon, aggravated assault, reckless driving, reckless endangerment, manufacturing/delivering/selling/possession of controlled substance and unlawful drug paraphernalia uses and activities. Butler is booked on $56,500 bond at the Coffee County Jail and will appear in court January 8, 2018.

Manchester Man Arrested on Several Charges

Atreyu J Duke intake photo.

On Saturday (November 25th 2017) Manchester officers responded to 228 West Moore Street in reference to a disturbance with a possible weapon involved. Upon arrival the victims told Officer Alberto Garza that Atreyu J Duke age 30 of Hickerson Rd Manchester had allegedly been abusive towards them all day, carrying a loaded Glock .45 caliber pistol. Duke allegedly pushed his wife and allegedly slapped his mother in law in the face. According to the arrest warrant, Duke went outside and fired three rounds from the gun.
After being booked at the Coffee County Jail, Duke was placed in a holding cell. Duke then allegedly broke the glass in the door of the holding cell.
The man was charged with 2 counts of aggravated assault and vandalism and placed under a bond of $25,000. Duke appeared in court for a preliminary hearing on Monday.

Some of Tennessee Governor Candidates Releasing Tax Returns

Four of the seven major candidates for Tennessee governor are declining to release details of their federal income tax returns.
The Tennessean newspaper asked the five Republicans and two Democrats in the race for copies of their federal tax filings. U.S. Rep. Diane Black and fellow Republican state House Speaker Beth Harwell provided financial summaries, and Democrat Craig Fitzhugh released his 2016 tax return.
Among the remaining Republicans, former state Sen. Mae Beavers and businessmen Randy Boyd and Bill Lee declined the request. As did Democratic former Nashville Mayor Karl Dean.
Lee, who runs his family-owned construction company, said he would not release his income in the interest of “protecting my business and the over 1,200 employees there.”
Dean and Boyd said they may consider releasing details in the future.

Social Media Use Linked to Teen Suicide

Experts believe increased online use may prompt suicidal thoughts among at-risk teens, as they compare their lives unfavorably to what others post. (Ryan Melaugh/flickr)

You may want to limit your teen’s use of social media.
A study released this month in the journal Clinical Psychological Science found links between use of online engagement platforms and feelings of hopelessness and suicide.
According to the analysis, teens who used electronic devices for more than five hours a day were 70 percent more likely to have suicidal thoughts.
Scott Ridgeway, executive director of the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network, says the loss of human interaction is a big factor.
“When our young folks are spending quite a bit of time on these devices, they are isolating themselves from social activities, and they’re taking themselves away from interactions from other folks,” he explains.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, teen suicide is on the increase in recent years, and cyber bullying and isolation from increased use of devices are believed to be two major factors.
Ridgeway says in addition to limiting online activity, parents should monitor what sites their children are visiting and watch for any changes in behavior.
He says another consequence of people posting so much about their day-to-day lives is the appearance that the lives of others are perfect or ideal, and teens may compare themselves in an unfavorable way.
“It’s pressures that are put on students and friends that shouldn’t happen, and then those are emotions that are really taken out of context,” Ridgeway states.
Ridgeway says his group and others are concerned about entertainment that may glamorize suicide or offer instruction on how people may take their own lives, such as the Netflix show “13 Reasons Why.”