Category: News

Coffee County EMS Director Michael Bonner appeared before the budget and finance committee recently to request $175,000 more than last year for the upcoming 2015-2016 fiscal year budget, which begins on July 1st. EMS costs and revenues are now captured in a separate fund known as the 118 Fund to keep better track of the actual costs and revenues of the ambulance operation. Since ambulance service revenues generally fall short of expenses by roughly $500,000 or more each year, the county general fund is required to cover any of those deficits. Because of this, the annual property tax bill shows that 5 cents worth of property tax is dedicated to the ambulance service. Accounts and Budgets Director Marianna Edinger said that the additional $175,000 would require a 2-cent tax increase unless certain expenses can be covered by other available sources of revenue. Bonner said that nearly all of the additional funding needed for next year is for items he has no control over such as salary increases that were adopted by the commission last year.
In other county news, Dr LaDonna McFall director of county schools recently requested an additional $1.4 million over last year’s budget to pay for four new teachers, four new school buses, salary increases across the board and more.
A $1.4 million budget increase for non-school departments would require a 14-cent tax hike. When it comes to schools, annual budget increases for the county school system require twice as much due to the state-mandated revenue sharing requirement with the school systems in Tullahoma and Manchester, even if the other schools are not requesting additional funds. This makes the actual budget request climb to $2.8 million.
County departments other than schools and the ambulance service are asking for around $625,000 in extra funding for their budgets for 2015-16. If all request are granted this could mean a property tax increase of approximately 36-cents.
One measure the Budget and Finance Committee hopes the full commission will do is to establish a capital projects fund for vehicles and other equipment costing $5,000 or more using surplus revenues of $325,000 available in the General Debt Service Fund. The new funding mechanism would improve cash flows, smooth out annual operating budgets for several departments and prevent a tax rate increase of 3.25 cents.
The county commission will meet Tuesday at 6 p.m. to further discuss the budget.

On Saturday Coffee County Deputy Kelly Smith observed a Tan Chevy Impala pulling out from Lank and Nicks in Hillsboro. The vehicle pulled out in front of deputy’s patrol car vehicle nearly striking it. Smith pulled over the vehicle at the Hillsboro Food Store and contact was made with driver and he said he had left his driver’s license at home. He told Smith that his name was Henry Williams and his birthdate was 9/16/1992. When the Deputy Smith went to his patrol car to check on the man’s name and birthdate he drove off. The suspect’s vehicle nearly hit a vehicle traveling south on Hwy 41. Smith gave chase as the suspect turned onto Hillsboro- Viola Road refusing to stop. The suspect stopped the Impala when it ran into a yard at 956 Hillsboro-Viola Road. The driver exited the vehicle and fled on foot jumping a chain link fence and ran into a residence at 928 Hillsboro-Viola Road. The deputy found the man inside the residence and he was identified as Henry Lee Wigham age 23 from Carthage, TN. He stated he got scared when he was pulled over because he had a warrant out of Smith County for Violation of Probation.
A records check was run and the warrant was confirmed. Wigham was charged with Evading Arrest, Stop Halt Frisk, Reckless Driving, and Criminal Impersonation. A hold was placed on him for the probation violation for Smith County.
Wigham’s bond was set at $15,000.

On Monday, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation released its latest study into the scope and nature of domestic violence offenses, as reported by Tennessee’s law enforcement agencies.
The study utilizes data sent to TBI through the Tennessee Incident Based Reporting System (TIBRS) and includes reported offenses which occurred from 2012 to 2014. Among the report’s findings:
• Simple Assault was, by far, the most frequently reported offense, accounting for 68.4% of all domestic violence offenses.
• Females were three times more likely to be victimized than males.
• From 2012 to 2014, victims were six times more likely to be abused by a spouse than an ex-spouse in domestic-related offenses.
• Domestic violence resulted in 270 murder victims during the three-year study period.
• Juveniles accounted for 58.9% of victims reporting a victim-to-offender relationship as child or step-child.
“The issue of domestic violence is, by no means, a novel problem in American society,” said TBI Director Mark Gwyn. “The persistence of domestic violence and the large number of related incidents reported to law enforcement necessitates continued awareness about this issue.”

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park has closed several trails and backcountry campsites after a 16-year-old boy was attacked by a black bear in the Hazel Creek section of the park in North Carolina. It happened about 10:30 Saturday night.
Park officials say the teenager was pulled from his hammock and injured by the bear. He received multiple injuries, including lacerations to the head, and was listed in stable condition at an area hospital on Sunday.

Manchester Police are searching for woman who took several razors from a business.
According to a report by Corporal Jon Holland, loss prevention personnel at Wal Mart on the Hillsboro Hwy reported that a white female entered the store and took $798 worth of razors from the store and left without paying.
The suspect may have left in a black 4-door Ford pick-up.
Anyone with information about the theft is asked to contact the Manchester Police Department at 728-2099 or Chief Investigator Billy Butler at 931-247-5133.

An inmate that escaped from the Grundy County Jail has been captured. Grundy County Sheriff Clint Shrum says that Kenneth Jason Franklin was caught Friday night. Shrum says they were tipped off that Franklin was in Marion County, and arrested him around 8:30p.m.
Deputies in Grundy County are trying to figure out how an inmate went unsupervised and escaped.
Police say Franklin had a history of running from law enforcement.
Police say Franklin asked to use the bathroom Wednesday night during worship service and was allowed to go unsupervised where police say he crawled under a fence, and escaped through the woods.
Franklin was taken into custody April 9th after a pursuit that started in Warren County and ended with a crash involving a patrol car in Grundy County.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation and the Tennessee Highway Patrol are working alongside Manchester Police and the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department to keep traffic flowing on Interstate 24 while thousands of fans flock to Coffee County for the 14th Annual Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival. The festival kicks off on Thursday night and continues through Sunday and State Troopers are scheduled to be on site 24 hours a day beginning Wednesday night, patrolling on ground and by air. The speed limit will be decreased to 55 miles-per-hour on I-24 between mile marker 104, just west of Exit 105, and mile markers 129, during the duration of the festival. Officials say Exit 111 will be used as the main festival exit, while exits 97, 105, temporary Exit 112 along with permanent exit’s 117 and 127 will be used as alternative exits if congestion begins to occur.
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. Thunder Radio 107.9 FM and AM1320 will have live traffic reports beginning Wednesday afternoon and running throughout the day Thursday.

Just three years after being released from prison, former Warren County teacher Pamela Rogers is in trouble again. Rogers, who taught at Centertown School in Warren County ten years ago was released from prison in 2012 after having served more than six years for sexual battery by an authority figure and exploitation of a minor. She was convicted of having a sexual relationship with a 13 year old student.
Last month, Rogers and two inmates at the Max Lutrell Correctional Complex in Memphis were indicted for felony introduction of contraband into a state penal facility. The three allegedly worked together to bring cell phones into the prison.
Rogers was arrested last week at her home in Clarkrange and taken to Memphis, where she was held on a $50,000 bond.

Some Tennessee school administrators will devote a small part of their summer to learning more about education in China.
The Confucius Institute at Middle Tennessee State University is leading a delegation of educators on a 10-day excursion to China for a whirlwind sample of Chinese elementary and secondary schools.
This is being done to enhance educators’ understanding of each other’s methods. For example, the pupil-teacher ratio is considerably smaller in China because schools hire 20 to 50 percent more faculty.
In addition, Chinese teachers spend only 16 to 20 direct contact hours with the students out of their 40-hour workweek. They have the rest of the week to spend on planning and giving students’ meaningful feedback compared to about two-and-a-half hours for American teachers.
The 2015 American participants include:
Susan Fanning, principal of Farrar Elementary School and Debbie Edens, principal of East Middle School from the Tullahoma City School District.

The annual Tullahoma Kiwanis Club Fireworks show will go on after all this summer, thanks to a partnership between the club, Zaxby’s, and the City of Tullahoma. The Kiwanis Club said earlier this year that the show would not be happening this year due to insufficient funding. Mayor Lane Curlee said the city will cover cost of a stage, lighting, and musical entertainment for the event, estimated to be about $4,500. The mayor also reached out to the Tullahoma Zaxby’s to assist, and the response was yes. The show will take place on Friday, July 3rd at Wilkins Stadium at the high school. Zaxby’s is working out details on how they will contribute, but Manager Mike Forsyth said it will be thousands of dollars.