Sheriff Offers Tips for Keeping Children Safe Online during COVID-19

May 5, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

Staying home to stay safe during the COVID-19 pandemic can lead to online dangers, especially for children who are out of school.

Sheriff Patrick Ray urges parents to be vigilant and offers some safety tips to help.

“Online predators are everywhere on the internet. You as a parent have the responsibility to keep your child safe. Make sure you are looking and watching what your children are participating in online. That is very important. We sometimes see children get online with someone they shouldn’t and bad things happen. We want you to be very cautious and informed what your child is watching and doing online,” said Sheriff Ray.

Keep an open communication with your child. If you see they seem upset or secretive about something they are doing online, check into it.

Watch for cyber-bullying during these times that we are in.

Make sure your child’s device is running with the latest software and anti-virus program.

Make sure the privacy settings are on.

Be sure to cover your child’s webcam when not in use. This can be done by placing a piece of colored tape over it to make sure no one can view your child.

Be cautious of free educational resources. Your child should never have to provide a photo or full name to anything. If someone is asking for a photo of your child, something is wrong with that web site.

Spend time with your child online. Help them recognize and avoid misinformation. Make sure they are looking at age appropriate content especially during this time of COVID-19 and that they are not reading false information making them think they are going to die. There are all kinds of digital information resources from credible organizations.

Encourage healthy online habits. Promote and monitor good behavior online Make sure your child is being respectful while communicating with other children or classmates.

Be mindful of what type of clothes they are wearing during video calls and have them avoid doing the video calls in a bedroom. They should be done at a kitchen table where an adult can be present, hear and see what is going on.

“We do want them to have fun,” said Sheriff Ray. “We encourage parents to have their children take advantage of any digital tools that get them up and moving. Physical activity is very good for children and adults. It lessens the chance of depression, and gets them up from sitting for long periods of time.

“Exercise videos or games that require physical movement of kids are good to use. Remember to balance online recreation with offline outdoor activities.

If you have any questions or concerns, call Sheriff Ray at the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department at 615-597-4935.

“We you have a specific concern we will be glad to check it out to determine if it is something appropriate for children,” said Sheriff Ray.

May 5, 2020
By:

Wes Taylor has been promoted to an expanded role at Wilson Bank & Trust that includes oversight of the bank’s consumer and small business lending operations, bank officials announced recently. He will also continue in his role as regional president of the eastern portion of the bank’s service area.

Taylor has served in managerial and lending roles at WBT since 2008. He was named a regional president and senior VP in early 2017, to oversee banking operations in DeKalb, Smith and Putnam counties as well as Watertown in eastern Wilson County. He has also worked as a commercial lender, regional mortgage manager and office manager since beginning his career with Wilson Bank in 2000 as a customer service representative in Watertown.

Among his new responsibilities, Taylor will supervise consumer lending for products like construction loans, home equity loans and auto loans, as well as small business lending.

“Wes has helped instill success at Wilson Bank in every role he’s held, and we look forward to the leadership he brings to his new position,” WB&T President John Foster said. “His varied experience in lending, his relationships with customers and his extensive knowledge in the field will help him provide great direction for our consumer and business lending teams bank-wide.”

Taylor is a graduate of Watertown High School and Middle Tennessee State University as well as the Graduate School of Banking and the Southeastern School of Commercial Lending at LSU. In the community, Taylor serves as a board member with United Way of Wilson County and the Upper Cumberland. He has previously served on the Leadership Rutherford alumni council, was an honorary co-chair for Relay For Life, and helped establish Murfreesboro Young Professionals.

Taylor and his wife Juliet live in Watertown with their two sons, John, 7, and James, 5.

Wilson Bank & Trust (www.wilsonbank.com) is a community bank established in 1987 to provide personal and professional service in a hometown setting. One of the top banks in the South in stability, products, technology, growth and earnings, WBT currently operates 28 full-service offices in nine Middle Tennessee counties, offering a full range of financial products that include secondary market mortgage loans and mobile and online banking services. Wilson Bank & Trust is a member of the FDIC and originates loans without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, handicap, or familial status.

April 30, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

The two men wounded in a shooting and stabbing Thursday night have now been identified. But the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, which is probing the case, has not released any further details.

According to Sheriff Patrick Ray the men, 23 year old Braxton Bennett and 20 year old Christian Owen are expected to recover from their wounds. They were airlifted by helicopter ambulance to an undisclosed hospital Thursday night.

The shooting and stabbing occurred during an altercation which began at a residence on Adcock Cemetery Road.

Bennett suffered stab wounds and Owen was the gunshot victim.

“On Thursday at 3:39 p.m. central dispatch received a call from an individual who said he was taking (driving) a 20 year old man with gunshot wounds to the emergency room of the hospital and that they were being chased by the shooter,” according to a statement released by Sheriff Patrick Ray Friday morning.

Upon arrival at the emergency room, city (Smithville Police) and county (DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department) officers learned that the person in the vehicle following the gunshot victim was not the shooter.

“More officers went to the address on Adcock Cemetery Road and during an investigation at the scene received information of a possible suspect and the vehicle he was driving. With that information, a “BE ON THE LOOKOUT” (BOLO) was issued to surrounding counties.

Officers later spotted and stopped the vehicle on Prater Road in the Four Seasons area. Three persons were in the car but neither of them was the suspected shooter. The vehicle was impounded and towed to the jail for evidence processing.

At 5:54 p.m., more than two hours after the initial call to central dispatch, the suspected shooter showed up at the hospital and was spotted there by officers.

Both the gunshot and stabbing victims were airlifted to an undisclosed hospital.

Agencies on all three scenes (hospital, Adcock Cemetery Road, Prater Road) were Sheriff Patrick Ray, officers from the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department, 13th District Attorney Bryant Dunaway and members of the District Attorney General’s Office, agents from the Tennessee Bureau of investigation, officers from Smithville Police Department, and Constable Mark Milam.

The investigation is ongoing.

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