Category: News

Grundy County Sheriff Deputies and Tracy City Police Department seized more than 50 grams of crystal meth and several marijuana plants.
Deputies went to 133 Sims Street after receiving information of a fugitive that could be located at the location. Deputies found several marijuana plants in plain view.
Further investigation resulted in the recovery of a meth lab, crystal meth, and marijuana plants.
Four people were arrested and booked into the Grundy County Jail. Jeremy Hill (Tracy City), Tracey Johnson (Jasper), Amy Ledford (Tracy City), and David Sweeton (Sequatchie).

Rutherford County is now the third Tennessee county to have a confirmed Zika virus case. The City of Murfreesboro is increasing efforts to battle mosquitoes this spring by attacking larvae with mosquito-attacking bacteria-based larvae.
Killing larvae before they have a chance to become adults is the recommendation of both the University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
The State of Tennessee Health Department advises the most effective way to reduce mosquitoes around your home is to eliminate breeding grounds by removing any containers that collect rainwater such as cans, buckets, bird baths, and old tires. The State also recommends personal protection measures such as clothing and insect repellents to help reduce the chance of mosquito bites.

The effort to reduce prescription drug-related problems in Tennessee received a boost when the Food and Drug Administration announced it was expanding its boxed warning, commonly referred to as a “Black Box Warning,” to include certain immediate-release pain medicines. The announcement comes after the Tennessee Neonatal Abstinence Working Group petitioned the FDA for the expansion in February, 2016.
Black box warnings provide information about the effects of prescribed medications including potential for addiction, abuse, overdose and death. They can help clinics make better decisions when caring for patients.
“The additional black box warning will bring much-needed support to our efforts across Tennessee to reduce opioid abuse,” said Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Commissioner E. Doug Varney. “Combined with the Controlled Substance Monitoring Database now in place to assist clinics with prescribing and dispensing decisions, we have more effective tools to help prevent homes, families and communities from being negatively affected by powerful narcotics.”
If you or someone you care for is in need of substance use treatment, call the TN Redline any time at 1-800-889-9789 for immediate help.

On Thursday Tullahoma Police Officer Phil Bratten arrested and charged Cory Michael Smith age 27 of Ovoca Rd Tullahoma with Evading arrest, Theft of property and Reckless endangerment.
Tullahoma Police received a complaint of an individual walking down West Carroll Street that a man was brandishing a gun and threatening motorists with it. According to the arrest warrant the man was located on West Carroll and when approached by officers the subject took off running on foot, ignoring their directions to stop and attempting to evade arrest. Smith allegedly was observed throwing an item behind an out building at the Civic Center before he was finally apprehended.
The warrant goes on to say that Smith not only endangered passing motorists by waving a loaded weapon at them, but also endangered children who would have been playing at the Civic Center by tossing the weapon in an area frequented by youngsters. Smith allegedly admitted to having the weapon and to tossing it beside the building at the center.
Tullahoma Police ran a check of the serial number on the loaded Glock nine-millimeter and determined it to have been stolen out of Bedford County in March of 2016.
Smith was booked at the Coffee County Jail under a bond of $12,500 and has a court date of July 28, 2016.

If you suspect fraud, waste and abuse in county government; employees, citizens and public officials can now report it through an online fraud-reporting form.
The form can be accessed through the county’s website where you’ll find a link to the State of Tennessee’s website and reports are confidential.
Coffee County government has approximately 30 different departments and the online form will provide an easier and confidential way for suspected cases of fraud to be reported and investigated.
To access the form, go to Coffee County’s website: http://www.coffeecountytn.org/. Click on the “Departments” tab and choose “Accounts & Budgets” from the dropdown box. Under the quick links on the right, click on the “Fraud, Waste & Abuse” link.
To utilize investigative resources and to protect the identity and reputation of individuals incorrectly accused of committing improper acts, formal investigations are not undertaken without adequate cause, according to the state.
Evidence such as documents, witnesses and other specific and relevant information assist in determining whether there is adequate cause to warrant an investigation.

May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month. It’s definitely needed, as motorcycle fatalities nationwide were up 10 percent in 2015 as compared to 2014. The Governors Highway Safety Association estimates the final total to be 5,010, only the third time in history the death toll has topped 5,000. In 2014 the toll was 4,548.
In Tennessee, motorcycle deaths were up by three in 2015, totaling 123.
Drivers of other motor vehicles should always be aware and looking out for motorcyclists around them and, of course, obey all traffic laws.

The Tullahoma Fire Department is partnering with The American Red Cross, Lowe’s Home Improvement Stores, and 1-800-BoardUp to canvass neighborhoods and ensure homes in the Tullahoma area have working smoke alarms.
“This year we have had six structure fires within the first four months compared to eleven structure fires total in 2015. “Several instances this year there have been no working smoke alarms to alert the occupants at the home,” said Fire Chief, Richard Shasteen. “There is no reason why our residents should put themselves in danger.”
The Tullahoma Fire Department will be in the Tullahoma neighborhoods starting in June. They will be available to assist with any fire safety questions.  The Fire Department will also be providing free smoke alarms and free installation in Tullahoma.
The Fire Department will be available to give advice on emergency escape plans, fire safety, and any other questions if needed.  There is no charge for this service.
The following is a list of dates, times, and locations for GET ALARMED Saturdays:

June  4

Sharondale/Westwood/Cumberland Ave.  (NW)

 

                   10:00 am- 3:00 pm

 

July 9

Tara Estates/Country Club Dr.  (NE)

                  10:00 am- 3:00 pm

August 6 Forrest Park/Dicks Dr.  (SE)

                  10:00 am- 3:00 pm

September 10 Ellis Acres/New West Middle School/Kaywood Subdivision (SW)

                 10:00 am- 3:00 pm

The goal of the Tullahoma Fire Department is to help bring awareness to the importance of fire safety and also to remind citizens that working smoke alarms save lives. Last year, more than 2,700 people throughout the nation died in residential fires. Two-thirds of those who died had been living in a home that did NOT have a working smoke alarm.
The Fire Department would like to remind citizens to take just 5 minutes to check your smoke alarms.  For questions about fire prevention and community education, contact Chief Richard Shasteen at rshasteen@tullahomatn.gov or call the Fire Hall at 931-455-0936.

The Education and Workforce Committee voted this week to back the bill that some Republicans have backed. The bill would have fewer students receiving free and reduced-price meals at school. The legislation would allow a trial period of so-called block grants for school meals in three states — meaning those states would no longer receive unlimited federal dollars for students who qualify for the free and reduced-price lunches, and states wouldn’t have to follow most federal nutrition standards.
The legislation, which the full House will consider, would also roll back some healthier school nutrition rules championed by first lady Michelle Obama.
Some schools say they are too restrictive and the healthier meals are not appetizing enough to students. Four schools in Coffee County would be effected; Deerfield Elementary, East Coffee, Hickerson Elementary and Hillsboro Elementary. In Manchester; Westwood Elementary and in Tullahoma, Bel Aire, East Lincoln Street, Farrar and Robert E. Lee.
The measure still has to go to the full legislature before it can become law. Congressman Jim Cooper said that nearly 25% of Tennessee children suffer from hunger. Some school leaders say that for many students, school meals are the only food they get each day.

Maj. Gen. Terry “Max” Haston, Tennessee’s Adjutant General, declared that the opening exercise for Tennessee Maneuvers 2016, the Guard’s largest statewide disaster drill in history, was “a complete success.”
From May 13-16, more than 600 Soldiers and 20 units from Tullahoma’s 30th Troop Command completed a series of grueling disaster preparedness exercises throughout Middle Tennessee testing the Guard’s ability to provide military assistance in the event of a catastrophic emergency. Soldiers worked alongside many state and local emergency agencies designed to test the abilities of all involved.