Man Charged with Assaulting Girlfriend after Chasing her with a Knife

February 2, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

A man accused of chasing his girlfriend with a knife and assaulting her was arrested last week.

41 year old Joey Williams of Short Mountain Highway, Smithville is charged with aggravated assault. His bond is $5,000 and his court date is February 15.

Sheriff Patrick Ray said that on Thursday, January 25 a deputy was dispatched to the Sheriff’s Office to speak with a woman who claimed to be a victim of an assault by her boyfriend. She told the officer that after they had gotten into an argument, her boyfriend chased her outside with a knife and then beat and kicked before holding her down and trying to choke her. She had red marks on her neck and bruises on her leg.

25 year old Randy Mitchell Hobbs, Jr. of Retha Frazier Road, Woodbury is charged with a third offense of driving on a revoked license. His bond is $12,500 and his court date is February 15.

Sheriff Ray said that on Friday, January 26 a deputy spotted a blue Ford Mustang on Highway 53 and knew that the driver had warrants against him.

The officer stopped the vehicle and spoke with the driver, Hobbs. A computer confirmed that Hobbs had active warrants against him by the THP for evading arrest and driving on a revoked license for failure to pay fines. He was later charged with a second offense for driving on a revoked license.

February 2, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

A Watertown man pulled over for a non-working tail light on his car has a lot more trouble on his hands after officers discovered that he was on probation, intoxicated, illegally in possession of a handgun, and had numerous drugs in his possession including methamphetamine and ecstasy.

27 year old Robert Jacob Hardison of Sparta Highway, Watertown is charged with driving under the influence, driving on a suspended license, possession of a handgun while under the influence, tampering with evidence, and possession of methamphetamine and schedule I, II, & VI drugs with intent to manufacture, deliver, or sell. His bond is $73,000 and his court date is February 15.

Sheriff Patrick Ray said that on Thursday, January 25 a deputy stopped a vehicle on Smith Road for a non working tail light. The officer spoke with the driver, Hardison and detected an odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle. Hardison admitted to having used marijuana and hydrocodone earlier in the day. He submitted to but performed poorly on field sobriety tasks. He also submitted to implied consent (blood test). During the investigation the officer learned that Hardison is on probation for a previous offense and that his license were suspended on October 14, 2017 for failure to show proof of insurance and that he had continued to drive even after receiving a citation in Wilson County for driving on a suspended license.

A search of Hardison’s vehicle turned up a Jennings 22 caliber handgun which is illegal since Hardison had the weapon in his possession while under the influence.

Drugs were also found in the car including six green pills believed to be ecstasy and three separate baggies of a crystal like substance suspected to be methamphetamine, which were in a metal tin on the driver’s side floorboard along with scales and separate baggies.

During a search of Hardison’s person, the deputy found a white pill believed to be hydrocodone. After being placed in custody and seated in the back of the deputy’s patrol car, Hardison pulled a silver container from the area of his crotch and put several pills from that container into his mouth and into the seat of the car, trying to dispose of them.

After Hardison admitted to the officers that he had other drugs in his home, they conducted a probation search of the residence upon containing consent from Hardison and found 37.19 grams of a leafy substance believed to be marijuana along another baggie of meth and more scales and baggies.

The total weight of all four baggies of meth found during this investigation totaled 3.6 grams.

60 year old Forrest Byrd of South College Street, Smithville is cited for simple possession of a schedule VI drug (marijuana). He will make a court appearance on February 23

Sheriff Ray said that Byrd gave an officer consent to search his room and found in the top drawer of a dresser were two marijuana joints wrapped in a plastic baggie. It weighed less than one gram. Byrd admitted that the marijuana belonged to him. The citation was issued on Monday, January 22 by a Sheriff’s Department Detective.

32 year old Clint Lee Shehane of Wade Street, Smithville is cited for simple possession of a schedule II drug. He will make a court appearance on February 1.

Sheriff Ray said that on Thursday, January 25 a Sheriff’s Department Detective went to a residence on Wade Street to pick up Shehane on a warrant. He was found hiding in a closet and in the area near him were two baggies of a rock like substance believed to be methamphetamine which weighed 0.37 grams and 0.71 grams.

January 31, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

Burn permits will not be issued today across much of the state including counties in Middle Tennessee, the Cumberland Plateau, and parts of East and West Tennessee. A forecast for strong winds and the low relative humidity increase the risk for a controlled debris burn to become a wildfire.

The Tennessee Department of Agriculture Division of Forestry will not be issuing any burn permits online today. The Division will issue permits by phone in some counties, provided certain conditions are met. The county phone number directory is available at burnsafetn.org/phonepermit.html.

The Division of Forestry evaluates debris burning conditions daily. According to the National Weather Service in Nashville, gusty south winds exceeding 30 mph will develop today. These winds, along with low relative humidity values, will elevate fire danger conditions throughout Middle Tennessee. Rain will return to the area on Thursday, with a mix of rain and light snow possible in the Upper Cumberland Thursday evening.

A burn permit is required by law for outdoor debris burning from October 15 through May 15 and is only issued when conditions are conducive to safe burning. The permit is free. If you live inside city limits, there may be additional restrictions. Check with your municipality before you burn.

When permits are issued, the following tips should be followed to conduct a safe debris burn:

– Check with local authorities to make sure there are no local restrictions on burning, especially in cities and towns that have their own burn permit system.

– Notify your local fire department and neighbors of your plans to burn.

– Do not burn on windy days and stay abreast of changing weather conditions.

– Establish control lines down to bare mineral soil at least five feet wide around burn piles.

– Keep fire containment equipment on hand during the fire (e.g. rake, shovel, water).

– Stay with the fire until it is completely out.

Visit www.BurnSafeTN.org for additional tips to burn safely and to protect your community.

Since first employed in the early 1990s, the Division of Forestry’s burn permitting program has successfully reduced the number of escaped debris burns by effectively communicating with citizens as to where, when, and how to conduct a safe debris burn. You will find more information about the Division and its programs at www.tn.gov/agriculture/section/forests.