Attorneys for Mayor and Son Appear in Court on their behalf for Arraignment

August 6, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

Defendants indicted by the Grand Jury two weeks ago or their attorneys were in DeKalb County Criminal Court Monday morning, August 6 to formally answer charges against them.

Judge Gary McKenzie presided.

As is typical on arraignment day, not guilty pleas were entered on behalf of the defendants and they will make another court appearance this fall.

Such is the case with Smithville Mayor Jimmy W. Poss and his son Tony Poss, both of whom are under indictment for theft of property and the mayor for official misconduct.

The Carthage law firm of Branden Bellar and Jamie Winkler represented the Poss’ in court Monday and entered not guilty pleas on their behalf. Neither the mayor nor Tony were required to attend after waiving their right to appear for their arraignment.

The cases against the Poss’ will be back on the criminal court docket on October 5 and they will remain on bond.

August 6, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

A man believed to be responsible for a pickup truck crash in December 2015 on Big Rock Road that injured himself and two others appeared for sentencing in DeKalb County Criminal Court on Monday, August 6.

Judge Gary McKenzie presided.

27 year old Christopher Lee Lewis entered a plea to two counts of vehicular assault and received a four year sentence in each case to run consecutively for a total of eight years but concurrently with a sentence against him in Warren County. He was given jail credit from March 13 to August 6, 2018.

The crash occurred on Monday, December 14 2015.

According to Trooper Bobby Johnson of the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Lewis was traveling north on Big Rock Road in a 1996 Chevy S-10 when he failed to negotiate a curve and went off the right side of the road and struck a tree. After the crash, Lewis got out and apparently tried to flee on foot. He was later spotted lying in the woods several yards from the crash site. According to Trooper Johnson members of the Smithville-DeKalb County Rescue Squad arrived on the scene and brought Lewis back up a steep embankment in a stokes basket. Trooper Johnson said Lewis acted belligerently and appeared to be intoxicated.

34 year old Carol Lewis and 31 year old Johnny Ray, passengers of the pickup, were trapped in the truck. Members of the DeKalb County Volunteer Fire Department used extrication equipment to get them out.

Both Christopher and Carol Lewis were flown by helicopter ambulance from near the scene to Vanderbilt Hospital while Ray was airlifted to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga.

Carol Lewis passed away several months later but apparently due to conditions unrelated to the accident

The grand jury indictments alleged that on December 14, 2015 Lewis did recklessly cause serious bodily injury to Johnny Ray and Carol Lewis by the operation of a motor vehicle, and the serious bodily injury was the proximate result of the intoxication of Christopher Lee Lewis, constituting the offense of vehicular assault.

53 year old Brian Franklin Strahan entered a plea to domestic assault and received a sentence of 11 months and 29 days on unsupervised probation. Strahan was arrested on Monday, July 31, 2017.. During an investigation, Smithville Police spoke with the parties involved and learned that Strahan and a family member had been in a verbal argument when another person began talking and became excited. According to police, Strahan allegedly grabbed his victim and pushed him down, causing several red marks on or about the neck and chest area indicating that a physical altercation had occurred.

27 year old Andrew West entered a plea to assault and received a sentence of 11 months and 29 days on probation. Six months of the probation will be supervised and if all costs and fees are paid during that time, West will be credited for time served.

August 6, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

Democrat Mary Alice Carfi will be trying to unseat Republican State Senator Mark Pody in the 17th district this fall.

The rematch will take place in the Tennessee General Election in November

Both Carfi and Pody were unopposed in their respective primaries last Thursday. District-wide Pody received 31, 426 votes while Carfi got 10,453.

District 17 is made up of Cannon, Clay, DeKalb, Macon, Smith, and Wilson Counties.

Last December, Pody won the seat vacated by former State Senator Mae Beavers in a special election. Pody defeated Carfi district-wide 5,990 to 5,682

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