Tennessee Highway Patrol Lieutenant Rescues Boater

May 4, 2020
By:

Heroic actions of an off duty THP Lieutenant rescued a young man during an outing on Center Hill Lake Saturday.

Lieutenant Charlie Caplinger was off duty with his fishing partner, Mike Redmon in a fishing tournament on Center Hill Lake. Around 10:00 a.m., they stopped to fish a spot when they heard a man talking loudly approximately 100 yards away. Initially, they thought he was just talking to his fishing partner. A few seconds later, the man started yelling for help and waving his arms. Lieutenant Caplinger and Mike immediately responded to the call for help.

When they arrived at the other party’s boat, a man said that his son had fallen into the water and could not swim, nor did he have a life jacket on. Lieutenant Caplinger jumped from his boat onto the other party’s boat. The son, appearing to be in his late 20’s or early 30’s, was hanging onto a tree covered in thorns. The father and Lieutenant Caplinger tried to lift the son back into the boat but were unable to do so. The other party’s boat began taking on large amounts of water and the rear of the boat started to sink.

Lieutenant Caplinger told the father to go to the front of the boat while Lieutenant Caplinger held onto the son. Lieutenant Caplinger’s fishing partner Mike, held onto the front of the boat to keep it from going further underwater, and threw Lieutenant Caplinger a life jacket for the son. Due to the circumstances, Lieutenant Caplinger was unable to get the life jacket on the son. Lieutenant Caplinger instructed Mike to put the boats together and push the boats to shallow water until the son could possibly stand on the bottom of the lake. Mike was able to push them to the bank, but the son was too exhausted to stand or move. The son’s lips were purple, and he kept saying, “Please don’t let me die.” After getting close to the bank, Lieutenant Caplinger, with the father’s assistance, pulled the son onto the back of his boat where he began to recover.

Lieutenant Caplinger offered to call 911 for an ambulance, but the family declined as the son started warming up and began to become more coherent. Over the weekend, Lieutenant Caplinger went one step further and checked on the son’s condition twice. The son is expected to be ok.

May 4, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

Many DeKalb County land and business owners may see a change in their property assessments this year.

Assessor of Property Shannon Cantrell said “Change of Assessment” letters are being sent to those affected.

“Change of assessment letters are going out in May because the assessment on your property, whether it be real property or personal property, has either gone up or down. There has been a change so you will get a “change of assessment” notice,” Cantrell said.

If you don’t agree with your property assessments, Cantrell said you should not wait until you get your tax bill in the fall to try and do something about it. The time to raise concerns is when the DeKalb County Board of Equalization meets in June. Cantrell will be taking appointments for those appeals starting May 18. The Board of Equalization will meet in person starting Monday, June 1 from 8:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.  at the auditorium of the county complex building with social distancing practices in place.

“Remember once the county board has met then you can no longer appeal locally for the 2020 taxes. I think that’s what catches a lot of people by surprise. They get their tax notice October 1 and that’s what really gets their attention if their taxes have gone up. Then they want to appeal it. But by that time the appeal for 2020 has already passed. We’re in the appeal season now,” said Cantrell.

“What is important to remember is that the county board of equalization normally meets the first week in June and if you would like to appeal your assessment now is the time to do that. Beginning May 18 call our office at 615-597-5925 and make an appointment to meet with the county board of equalization to discuss the assessment on your appraisal,” Cantrell continued.

“It doesn’t have to be that you had a change of assessment this spring. Maybe nothing changed from last year but maybe you weren’t pleased with your assessment last year. Anybody can come and see the county board of equalization,” Cantrell added.

County equalization boards across the state are to meet each year on June 1 (or the next business day if the 1st falls on Saturday or Sunday). The county board is authorized by law to receive and hear appeals of current year property tax assessments as fixed by the county assessor of property. Generally an assessment must be appealed to the county board of equalization to preserve the taxpayer’s right to further appeal.

May 4, 2020
By:

Election officials locally and across the state are gearing up for an increase in absentee voting due to health concerns related to the COVID-19 virus.

“Traditionally less than three (3) percent of DeKalb voters cast their ballot by mail, but we are anticipating an increase in that number, both for the August and certainly the November election,” said DeKalb County Administrator of Elections Dennis Stanley. “With health concerns on their mind, now is the time to remind voters of the eligibility requirements and certain dates relating to absentee voting.”

The first day the election office can receive a written request for an absentee ballot for the August election is Friday, May 8th. “Requests received before Friday will be rejected,” Stanley said. The last day to request an absentee ballot is July 30.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO VOTE ABSENTEE BY-MAIL IN TENNESSEE?

In Tennessee, in order to vote absentee by-mail, a voter must have a qualifying reason. The following categories describe the voters who can abesnetee vote by-mail:

1. The voter will be outside the county of registration during the early voting period and all of Election Day;

2. The voter or the voter’s spouse is enrolled as a full-time student in an accredited college or university outside the county of registration;

3. The voter’s licensed physician has filed a statement with the county election commission stating that, in the physician’s judgment, the voter is medically unable to vote in person. The statement must be filed not less than seven (7) days before the election and signed under the penalty of perjury;

4. The voter resides in a licensed facility providing relatively permanent domiciliary care, other than a penal institution, outside the voter’s county of residence;

5. The voter will be unable to vote in person due to service as a juror for a federal or state court;

6. The voter is sixty (60) years of age or older;

7. The voter has a physical disability and the voter’s polling place is inaccessible

8. The voter is hospitalized, ill, or physically disabled because of such condition, cannot vote in person (A person who is quarantined because of a potential exposure or who has tested positive for COVID-19 should vote absentee by-mail as a person who is ill);

9. The voter is a caretaker of a person who is hospitalized, ill or disabled;

10. The voter is a candidate for office in the election;

11. The voter serves as an Election Day official or as a member or employee of the election commission;

12. The voter’s observance of a religious holiday prevents him/her from voting in person during the early voting period and on Election Day;

13. The voter or the voter’s spouse possesses a valid commercial driver’s license (CDL) or the voter possesses a valid Tennessee Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) card and certifies that he/she will be working outside the state or county of registration during the open hours of early voting and Election Day and has no specific out-of-county or out-of-state address to which mail may be sent or received during such time;

14. The voter is a member of the military or is an overseas citizen.

“We know a lot of voters will take advantage of the fact that if they are 60 years of age or over they are eligible to vote absentee,” Stanley said. “We’re getting ready for that.”

In addition, Stanley reminded first time voters there is another stipulation regarding absentee by-mail voting.

“If a person is a first-time voter who registered by mail, they are not eligible to vote absentee unless they convert their registration to in person by presenting a valid photo ID in-person to the county election office before the July 30 deadline.” he said.

MAKING THE REQUEST

A registered voter may request an absentee ballot by: mail, fax and email. The request MUST INCLUDE the voter’s signature. In addition, the request MUST INCLUDE the following EIGHT (8) items:

1. The name of the registered voter;

2. The address of the voter’s residence;

3. The voter’s Date of birth;

4. The voter’s Social Security number;

5. The address to mail the ballot outside the county (this applies only when the reason for voting by mail involves that the voter will be outside of the county during early voting and on election day);

6. The election the voter wishes to participate in. If the election involves a Primary, the political party in which the voter wishes to participate;

7. The reason the voter wishes to vote absentee;

8. The voter’s signature. (If the voter is unable to sign his/her name, contact the Election Commission office for details.)

A printable request form can be found on the local election commission website at www.dekalbelections.com.

As stated above, the request can be mailed to; DeKalb Election Office, P.O. Box 543, Smithville, TN 37166; emailed to dekalbelections@dtccom.net or dekalb.commission@tn.gov; or faxed to 615-597-7799.

“Voters are encouraged to get their requests in as soon as possible,” Stanley said, and upon receiving a ballot, returning it as soon as possible.

“Remember, the actual ballot must be mailed to the above address. The actual ballots cannot be hand-delivered to our office,” he concluded.

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