Negotiations are still ongoing in the case against the former director of the Bedford County Emergency Communications District accused of theft. Cathey D. Mathis’ case has been passed until May 16, after defense attorney Greg Reed told Circuit Court Judge Lee Russell that preliminary discussions are taking place with Coffee County Assistant District Attorney Felicia Walkup. Reed said there “was a possibility of some resolution,” but they would like more time for discussions. Russell asked if he should get a judge from Nashville to hear the case, since he can only accept a plea in the matter, and not...

The bonds that children develop with their parents early on can be fundamental to their success in life, but the latest research finds many babies and toddlers are missing out, and that means problems. A new analysis concludes that 40 percent of children are not getting that needed secure attachment, which family therapist Susan Stiffelman says comes through parents being attuned to their baby. “That means relating and responding and interacting with them in such a way that says ‘I’m with you,’” she explains. “’We’re connected. Your needs matter. They can be understood and acted upon.’ And it sort...

The new Coffee County jail is set to open later this year but will the current workhouse remain open? The workhouse is the portion of the old jail where low-risk inmates sentenced to the work detail program are housed. Sheriff Steve Graves says the new jail is not being built to include a work detail, and that any work detail program must be conducted in a completely separate facility from the jail itself. Commissioner Rush Bricken and others agreed that since the cities of Tullahoma and Manchester, the Coffee County Rural Solid Waste Department and several non-profits use the...

A man accused of driving a pickup truck that crashed into a motorcycle, killing two people, has been indicted by the Warren County Grand Jury on nine counts, including vehicular homicide. Harlin Alvarez faces charges in connection with the crash in 2008 that killed Samantha Roach and Billy Lynn Bell. The sealed indictment charges him with 2 counts of vehicular homicide, reckless vehicular homicide, criminally negligent homicide, leaving the scene of an accident involving fatalities, and driving on a suspended license. He is being held without bond in the Warren County Jail. Alvarez was able to elude authorities for...

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park has received one of its largest cash donations ever, a $2.2 million gift from an anonymous donor. The money will be used to pay off an existing construction loan that funded a visitor center near the park’s Cherokee, N.C., border, opened in 2011. Money from the gift will also be used toward a new loan to help construct the 13,000-square-foot Collections Preservation Center scheduled to be finished in fall 2015. The Knoxville News-Sentinel reports the money will be directed through the Great Smoky Mountains Association, a nonprofit organization that supports the park’s educational,...

Legislative leaders are considering a one-year delay in the testing component for Tennessee’s Common Core education standards. Last month, a broad coalition of Republican and Democratic House members passed a bill seeking to delay further implementation of the new standards for two years. It also seeks to delay the testing component for the standards for the same amount of time. The Knoxville News Sentinel reports legislative leaders are discussing a compromise that would delay testing for a year. Under the proposal, the state Department of Education would put out a “request for proposals” for alternative testing. The state’s current...

July 4 may be three months away, but the Tullahoma Kiwanis Club is already planning its 45th annual Independence Day Celebration and fireworks show for the public at the Tullahoma Regional Airport. In addition to fireworks, an aerial show will be staged by Keith Davis and his Pitts aerobatic airplane. While the show is free, the club will be accepting any and all donations to help with the cost of providing the huge fireworks display. In addition to hearing plans for the Kiwanis celebration, the Tullahoma Airport Authority was told as its meeting that two more events are scheduled...

The Sonic Restaurant on North Jackson Street in Tullahoma had to be evacuated Thursday morning around 11 a.m. due to a fire. Brian Young, owner of the restaurant, stated that an electrical fire started in the back of a fryer. The building quickly filled with smoke and the fire department was notified. The fire fighters battled the smoke and fire for some time before extinguishing. According to Fire Chief Richard Shasteen, the kitchen area of the restaurant suffered “moderate damage.” Manchester Fire and Rescue was standby while Tullahoma firefighters were on the scene of the Sonic fire. The restaurant...