Category: News

A 29-year old Manchester man was robbed at gunpoint on North Highland and Evergreen Street. Murfreesboro Police Officer Kyle Frazier reports the victim left Civan Court and picked up a black male he thought he knew around 4:15 Monday morning. The suspect told him to take him to Evergreen Street and drop him off. The suspect then allegedly took the victim’s seven-inch tablet and pulled out a handgun. That’s when the victim called 9-1-1 and the suspect fled on foot. The suspect is described as a black male, close to 30-years old and between 5-7 and 5-9. At the time of the incident he was wearing blue jeans, a blue jean vest, a sun hat and a white t-shirt.

They’re back! Thousands of music lovers are on “The Farm” for fun-filled days of music, food, art and much more known as the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester.
If you are going please be very aware of HOT conditions and don’t forget the sunscreen. Medical personnel are also advising to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.
Thursday’s entertainment starts at 5pm. Headliners on Friday will be Alabama Shakes followed by Kendrick Lamar. On Saturday night My Morning Jacket will hit the main stage at 8pm followed up by Mumford & Sons. The festival closes late Sunday night as Billy Joel hits the stage at 9pm.

A new investigation by the Tennessee Comptroller’s office has revealed that employees of the Warren County EMS-Rescue Service (WCEMS) received wages totaling $23,834.40 for time worked at another entity or for time that was undocumented.
Investigators found that two employees received a total of $3,514.60 in wages from WCEMS for hours in which they were working for a separate entity not associated with Warren County government. Comptroller investigators compared time sheets for both entities and noted 256 hours which overlapped.
Additionally, 12 employees received a total of $20,319.80 in wages from WCEMS for hours that had no documentation to support the employees were at work. Investigators have made several recommendations to improve accuracy and oversight of time worked. Warren County leaders indicate they are now implementing a time clock system that utilizes an employee’s thumbprint at WCEMS.
The investigative report also outlines concerns with the calculation and documentation of vacation, sick, and compensatory leave. Additional payroll problems are also noted in the report.
All of the findings and recommendations have been reviewed with the district attorney general for the Thirty-first Judicial District.

Since 2002, the City of Manchester and Coffee County have hosted one of the most popular live music events in the country – the annual Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival.
As in years past, around 100,000 music lovers are expected to attend this year’s festival, which kicks off Thursday night, June 11, and winds down Sunday night, June 14.
TDOT and the THP are working closely with the Manchester Police Department, the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department and festival promoters to keep traffic moving on I-24 while also getting Bonnaroo attendees to their destination.
This year, Bonnaroo will officially open all its gates on Wednesday evening June 10 at 8:00 p.m. CDT to allow more time for vehicles to enter the campgrounds.
TDOT HELP units will assist with traffic management during the festival and will aid any motorists who require assistance.  In addition to having HELP trucks on-site, TDOT and other agencies will be taking the following steps beginning June 10 through June 15:

• Efforts will be concentrated on keeping I-24 traffic flowing.
• Exit 111 (SR 55) will be used as the main festival exit. Exits 97, 105, 112 (temporary exit on westbound side only), 117 and 127 are alternate exits if congestion occurs on the interstate.
• TDOT maintenance units will be posted throughout the festival region, and maintenance personnel will be on call all weekend.
• TDOT will provide variable message signs to warn drivers of delays.
• There will be no construction-related lane closures on I-24 near the Bonnaroo festival area between 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 10 through 7:00 p.m. on Monday, June 15.
• Median crossovers will be guarded to prevent motorists from parking in the crossovers and blocking emergency vehicles.
• Festival traffic will be kept in the right lane and/or on the shoulder of the interstate, allowing through traffic to utilize the left travel lane unimpeded.
• Emergency vehicles will use county roads that will be kept at low volume.
• Bonnaroo promoters issued early news releases to the trucking industry and other sources to alert the traveling public to festival times, location, and alternate routes.
• Temporary communication towers are in place to improve emergency communications.

During the festival, motorists should call 511 from any mobile or land line phone for traffic updates or visit the TDOT website at www.tn.gov/tdot where they can also find information on alternate routes.  From your desktop or mobile device, get the latest traffic information and live streaming SmartWay traffic cameras at www.TNSmartWay.com/Traffic.  TDOT is also on Twitter.  For statewide traffic tweets follow TN511 or for regional traffic information follow Nashville511, Chattanooga511, Memphis511 and Knoxville511.
Also, drivers should keep in mind that if they need the assistance of a state trooper while traveling anywhere in Tennessee, they can simply dial *THP (*847) from their cell phone.  They will be automatically connected to the nearest THP dispatch office and the operator will send a state trooper to their location.

According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, a 2-vehicle crash occurred at 5:35am Monday morning near mile-marker 107 on Interstate 24. A 2002 Chevrolet Blazer driven by Sherry May, age 42, of Manchester, TN, was traveling eastbound when, for an unknown reason, the driver lost control of the vehicle and rear-ended a 2002 Dodge Neon driven by 24-year-old Aaron Cousins of Hixon, TN. The impact caused May’s Blazer to lose control and roll several times landing on the right shoulder of the roadway. May was ejected from the vehicle, and she was taken medical helicopter to Vanderbilt Medical Center for treatment of her injuries. Cousins was uninjured.

The Shelbyville Police Department is looking for the driver responsible for a hit and run involving a family of four. The incident occurred while the family was walking on the side of the road in the 600 block of Deery Street around 10:30 p.m. Sunday night. When officers arrived on scene, they discovered three of the four family members needed medical attention. Two were transported to Heritage Medical Center and the third was sent via Life Flight to Vanderbilt. Anyone with information about the incident is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 931-685-4300 or Det. Lt. Brian Crews at 931-684-5811.

Gas prices have been creeping up in some parts of the southeastern United States over the last 2 weeks, but motorists are forecast to pay the lowest summer gas prices since 2009. In comparison to this same date last year, Tennesseans are saving 92 cents per gallon.
The national average of $2.75 per gallon is 1-cent more than last week. The Tennessee average of $2.51 is 2 cents more than last week. Prices in Manchester have been coming down this week, falling to a low price of $2.47, that’s 2-cents lower. In Tullahoma the low price per gallon is up 7-cents to $2.44.

For children in Tennessee, childhood isn’t all bedtime stories and playgrounds.
The Volunteer State is one of five states recognized in a recently released report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the prevalence of what experts call an adverse childhood experience, or ACE. Those experiences include abuse and neglect, and according to the report, 52 percent of children in the state experience an ACE at least once during childhood. Barbara Nicholson, co-founder of Attachment Parenting International based in Tennessee, says ACEs can have a big impact on children going forward. “A lot of families in Tennessee are under a lot of stress,” she points out. “Parents need to be that listening ear, that empathic person and that is what will give them resilience to other stresses that maybe parents don’t have that much control over.” The report underlines the long-term impact of things such as abuse and neglect on a child’s brain development. Both the report and Nicholson recommend building a strong and solid foundation for children by talking, singing and rhyming with them; breastfeeding if possible; offering good nutrition and regular sleep. Nicholson adds it’s also important to engage children in the process of discipline and teach them a lifestyle of healthy habits. Attachment Parenting International recommends that parents respond to their children with sensitivity and consistent and loving care. Nicholson says it often comes down to making sure parents are offered proper support, particularly in the first three years of their child’s life. “Reaching parents when their children are very young – infants, toddlers – that seems to be the most critical period and that’s when they’re more open for support,” she stresses. While more than half of Tennessee children have experienced at least one ACE, 21 percent of them have experienced three or more, which can lead to chronic disease, mental illness, violence and being a victim of violence.