Category: News

A Coffee County man was booked in at the Coffee County Jail last week, charged with domestic violence and violation of an order of protection.
Phillip Wayne Coppinger faces those charges after an alleged incident involving his wife. Deputy Charles Taylor, received a call of a female attempting to get away from a male subject at Par 4 Market, on the McMinnville Highway in Manchester. While enroute Taylor was advised that the man had left the Par 4 parking lot traveling eastbound on McMinnville Highway in a gray Dodge van. After traveling toward McMinnville Taylor had no contact with the vehicle. Taylor then went back to Par 4 Market and found Coffee County Ambulance personnel with an Asian female identified as the man’s wife. The female was visibly shaken and had bruises on her arms, back, neck and a scratch on the left side of her face. She told the deputy that her husband, (Phillip Wayne Coppinger) had assaulted her while driving the vehicle from the Budget Motel in Manchester the night before. She alleged that she stayed in the van all night and when Coppinger got in the van he accused her of having relations with other men. She went on to tell Deputy Taylor that her husband began to hit her about the head and back with his hand and also hit her with water bottles that were in the van. She also alleges that he choked her and pulled her hair while driving down the road. The female stated that when they stopped at Par 4 Market to get gas she jumped out of the van and ran into the store. The clerk at the store stated that she called police and the male subject acted like he was going to come in the store but left eastbound on McMinnville Highway. The alleged victim was transported by ambulance to the Medical Center of Manchester for treatment due to the fact that she stated she was having trouble breathing.
A “be on the lookout call” was given to the Warren County Sheriff’s Department for the Dodge Van. A few minutes later Warren County deputies stopped the vehicle. A check of the driver, Phillip Wayne Coppinger, showed an active Order of Protection against him out of Colorado filed on February 11, 2015 by his wife. Warren County Deputies transported Coppinger to the county line and then he was transported by a Coffee County deputy to the jail. Bond was set at $15,000.

A Manchester couple has filed a $350,000 lawsuit against the Kroger Company and a real estate investment company after an incident that allegedly occurred on Feb. 16, 2015 in Tullahoma. According to the suit, Carolynne Pettit allegedly was walking up the handicap ramp to get a shopping buggy. The lawsuit alleges that she slipped on ice covering the ramp and her “feet came out from under her causing severe and painful injuries to her knees, hip, arm and shoulder,” according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit was filed in Coffee County Circuit Court against Kroger Limited Partnership, doing business as Kroger located at 1905 North Jackson Street and Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust, the management company and owner of Forrest Gallery on North Jackson Street, Tullahoma.
The Pettits are represented by Manchester Attorney Eric Burch.
The lawsuit is only one side of the legal issue.

A Grand Jury has returned indictments against a McMinnville couple in the death of their one month old daughter last month.
19 year old Austin Adams and his wife, 19 year old Savannah Adams have been charged with felony murder and aggravated child neglect in the death of their daughter, one month old Anessa Adams.
The couple told police they had been sleeping on a sectional couch at their apartment when they awoke to find the baby between two cushions and not breathing. The child was dead on arrival at River Park Hospital. Police are still awaiting the autopsy report.
Police say the murder charge stems from the suspected use of illegal drugs by the couple.
The two are each under a $300,000 bond.

The Coffee County Sheriff’s Department would like to inform the public that they are having telephone difficulties at the new Coffee County Jail.
Coffee County Sheriff Steve Graves says that his department is working with phone service provider Ben Lomand Communications to correct the issues.
If you are attempting to call the Sheriff’s Department/Jail please be patient as they continue to correct the problems.
If you are trying to reach the department the telephone number remains the same, 931-728-3591.

Coffee County Judge Jere Ledsinger has set July 2 for a preliminary hearing for Robert Travis Rosson. He is accused of pulling a knife and allegedly lunging at a Coffee County Sheriff’s deputy on June 11. The deputy, Phillip Smith, then fired 3 shots at him, striking him in the shoulder and the thigh.
Rosson was flown to Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga where he underwent surgery to repair his shoulder.
He is now being held in the Coffee County Jail under a $500,000 bond.

Some residents in the area of East Lauderdale and South Anderson Street in Tullahoma had to be evacuated Thursday morning.
According to Tullahoma Fire Chief Richard Shasteen, employees from Tullahoma Utilities Board struck a natural gas line while digging to install a utility pole causing the leak.
“There were about 25 customers affected by the leak,” Shasteen said. “We evacuated 15 residents and businesses from the area for about an hour.” The leak occurred around 9:30 a.m.
The fire department arrived on the scene and immediately closed off the area while employees of the Elk River Public Utility District arrived and started closing off the gas line. After about 45 minutes residents were allowed to return to their houses and businesses were allowed to open back up.
For public safety, Shasteen requested the Manchester Fire Department to standby at Compton’s Creek and the AEDC Fire Department to standby at the golf course on the AEDC Road. “We asked them to standby in case there might be a fire in those areas and we couldn’t pull away from the leak in time to get there, they could,” the fire chief said.
In addition to members of the fire department there were also Tullahoma Police Officers assisting with traffic control in the area. Also assisting at the scene were members of the Coffee County Ambulance Service and Coffee County Emergency Management Agency Director Allen Lendley.

Thursday morning at approximately 4:45am the North Franklin County Fire Department was called to a fully engulfed structure fire at Little Hurricane Baptist Church. Upon arrival it was determined the detached Fellowship Hall, was the location of the fire. Firefighters worked for 4 hours, to extinguish the fire and saved the main church from being extensively damaged.
Fire departments from Broadview, Decherd, Estill Springs, Moore County, and Winchester fought the blaze.
The Franklin county sheriff’s department and Rural Metro Ambulance Service assisted firefighters.