A Dickson County man was sentenced to three years on probation for his convictions on two counts of purchasing stolen property. Judge Larry Wallace denied a judicial diversion for Roy Thomas Grunch, which would have allowed him to have his record cleared. A jury convicted Grunch of Harris Road on two counts of theft following a day-long trial in Dickson County Circuit Court Sept. 23. Grunch had been indicted after investigators found three stolen all-terrain vehicles, two stolen trailers and two stolen rifles on his property just off Highway 48 South on Feb. 11, 2015. At the trial, Assistant District Attorney Billy Miller called Grunch a “fence” who was “purchasing property that he knew was stolen.” The jury set the value of the two ATVs reported stolen in Dickson County at $1,300 and $8,500, making the convictions class D felonies, with a potential punishment of 2-12 years in prison and up to a $5,000 fine on each count. Following a sentencing hearing in Charlotte Wednesday, Wallace sentenced Grunch to three years in prison on each count to be served concurrently and suspended to probation. The judge denied Grunch’s application for a judicial diversion, under which he could have applied to have his record expunged after completing his probation. After a Deal Road resident reported a 2005 Arctic Cat four-wheeler and 5X8 trailer stolen on Feb. 9, he told investigators he saw the stolen items in an ad on Craigslist the next day. Detectives Jeff Lovell and Russell Morgan went to Grunch’s home where they discovered the trailer with the serial number sticker removed and a fresh coat of paint on that section of the trailer tongue. Grunch claimed he had bought it 2-3 weeks earlier from someone on Facebook whose name he couldn’t remember. A search of an outbuilding turned up the stolen Arctic Cat, a Yamaha Grizzly ATV reported stolen from South Spradlin Road and a Honda Foreman ATV reported stolen in Humphreys County. The detectives also found 30.06 and .22-caliber rifles that were reported stolen. Miller said it was not the prosecution’s contention that Grunch stole the property, but that he knew it was stolen when he bought it, which under Tennessee law falls under the crime of theft.

The Dickson County School Board approved a 2016-17 budget last month and will present it to the Dickson County Commission’s Budget and Budget Advisory committees tonight. The budget projects total revenues of $62.7 million, up from $59.5 million in the current budget, which was amended to just over $62 million based on actual revenue received. Revenue from property tax collections is predicted to increase from $7.8 million to over $8.1 million, which has been amended to reflect the amount actually projected to be collected this year. Basic Education Program funds from the state also are projected to increase over $2 million. The total estimated expenditures for 2016-17 are $65.3 million, an increase of $1.1 million. The budget projects increases of $300,000 in regular instruction expenses, $56,000 in alternative instruction, $130,000 in special education programs and $145,000 in vocational education. The budget draft shows a shortfall of just under $2.6 million that will come from the school system’s $7.6 million fund balance. The money for any new buildings was not included in the proposed budget, but it would have added an estimated $1.3 million. The proposed budget goes before the county commission’s Budget and Budget Advisory committees at 6:30 pm Monday in the Courthouse Annex in Charlotte. Mayor Bob Rial has said he hopes the commission can hold a public hearing and approve the budget at its June 20 meeting.

Marilyn Field

A funeral service will be held Wednesday for Marilyn Lightfoot Field, the former director of the Tennessee Department of Human Services office in Dickson and widow of former Dickson County Executive William D. “Bill” Field. Mrs. Field died Saturday at the age of 84. Mrs. Field worked for 40 years with the Department of Human Services and was named County Director of the Year in 1985. She was a charter member of the Pilot Club and the Business and Professional Women’s Club and was a member of the Red Hat Societea. She served for 10 years on the Tennessee Department of Health’s Board of Massage Licensure and as district director for the Business and Professional Women’s Club. She was the first woman elected to serve on the Dickson County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and was instrumental in establishing the United Way of Dickson County, the Dickson County Help Center and a mental health center in Dickson County. She was a member of First Baptist Church. Mrs. Field was married to “Judge” Bill Field for 44 years prior to his death in a 1998 automobile accident. Mr. Field served as county judge and county executive, the position now known as county mayor, for 27 years 1970-97. He also served as the county’s juvenile court judge. At the time of his retirement, he was the longest-serving county executive in the United States. The industrial park in Dickson County is named in his honor. The W.V. Lightfoot group home opened by Developmental Services of Dickson County on West 5^th Street in 1992 is named in honor of Mrs. Field’s father. Visitation with the family of Marilyn Field will be 2-8 pm Tuesday at the Spann Funeral Home and 11 am-1 pm Wednesday at Dickson First Baptist Church. A funeral service will be at 1 pm Wednesday at the Dickson First Baptist Church with Pastor Mike Miller, Pastor Todd Vermilyea and Rev. Ron Green officiating. Burial will be in Union Cemetery. Mrs. Field is survived by two sons, William Douglas Field Jr. and Steve Field; two grandsons, Matthew Field and Nathan Field; two great-granddaughters, Ella Rue Field and Elizabeth Joyce Field; two step-grandsons, Douglas Doss and Tim Doss; and one step-great-grandson, Owen Doss.

Keith Bellar

Today marks the fifth anniversary of the tragic shooting of Dickson County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Keith Bellar, while Tuesday will be the anniversary of his passing. The 28-year-old deputy was shot June 6, 2011, while still in his patrol car after driving up on what he thought was a traffic accident but turned out to be a domestic assault in progress on West Walnut Street around 7 am. He would pass at Vanderbilt University Medical Center shortly before 8 am June 7, leaving behind wife Brandi and six-month-old son Jacob. The shooter, 27-year-old Jayson Paul Eggenberg of Charlotte, would take his own life shortly after shooting Bellar. Deputy Bellar was the second line-of-duty loss in the history of the Dickson County Sheriff’s Office. Deputy Bellar was a 2002 graduate of Dickson County High School who had been with the sheriff’s office since 2004. In addition to his wife and son, he was survived by parents Ricky and Debbie Bellar, brother Chris Bellar, and grandfather J.C. Bellar.

Lady Cougar seniors Selena Crafton, Makray Odom, Brooklin Lee and Ashley Scott finished their high school careers with a 172-35-2 record and two state championships. (photo courtesy DC CougarNation Facebook page)

The postseason awards continue to pile up for Dickson County High School’s Brooklin Lee and she will be joined by teammate Ashley Scott in a state all-star series. The Tennessee Softball Coaches Association named Lee Miss Softball for Middle Tennessee in Class AAA on Monday. Lee and Scott were named to the TSCA Middle Senior All Star team that will play teams from East and West Tennessee in a three-game series June 21. The association also named Scott and Makray Odom to the Class AAA All State team from Middle Tennessee and named Lady Cougar coach Shane Buchanan as Middle Tennessee All Star Class AAA coach along with Waverly’s Stephen Webb in Class AA and Greg Burlison of Summertown in Class A. Lee and Scott will play on the Middle Tennessee squad in the TSCA All Star Games June 21 at Columbia State University. The Middle team will face the East Tennessee team at 1:30. There will be a Home Run Derby at 3:30. The East and West teams play at 4 pm. The TSCA Awards ceremony will be at 6 pm and the Middle team will battle the West at 6:30. A Tennessee All Star team will compete in a best-of-three series against the Kentucky All Stars June 28 at a site to be announced. The Tennessean also named Lee its Midstate Player of the Year for the second year in a row. Lee had a 28-6 record on the mound for the 42-7-1 Lady Cougars, with 14 shutouts and four no-hitters. She pitched 197.1 innings with 289 strikeouts and only 43 walks with a 0.88 ERA. She batted .388 with five home runs, 18 extra-base hits, 37 runs scored, 38 RBI, 20 walks and 20 stolen bases. Last week Lee was named Gatorade Softball Player of the Year for Tennessee for the second year in a row and she is expected to be named to the Tennessee Sports Writers Association All-State Team for the fourth time when it is released in July. The Tennessean also named Odom to its All-Midstate First Team. The senior outfielder had a .590 batting average with 66 runs scored, 46 RBI and seven home runs. She also won five games as a pitcher, including one no-hitter. Buchanan was named the Midstate Coach of the Year. Buchanan led the Lady Cougars to their third state championship in 15 years and fifth appearance in the title game, including the last four in a row. Over the last four seasons, the Lady Cougars have a 172-35-2 record, are 46-2 in regular season district games, won two district tournaments, four region tournaments, finished as runners-up in two state championships and won two state titles. The four seniors who were a part of that dominating run are committed to playing softball at the college level. Lee will play at Belmont University, Scott at Union University, Odom at Trevecca Nazarene University and Selena Crafton at Tennessee State University.

The Dickson Parks and Recreation Department is hosting two day camps for children ages 6-12. The camps will be June 20-24 and July 18-22. Campers will report to the Tennsco Community Center each day at 8 am. The campers will participate in several activities and take a field trip somewhere different each day. Activities will include pottery painting with Spot’s Pots, bowling, skating, swimming, a movie at The Roxy and more. Each camp day ends at 4 pm back at the community center. The camp fee is $60 for children residing inside the Dickson city limits, $65 for children residing in Dickson County but outside the city and $70 for children outside Dickson County. For more information or to register a child for the Dickson Parks and Recreation Department day camps, call 615-446-1721.

Due to a schedule conflict with a witness, two upcoming murder trials have swapped dates. The trial of 32-year-old Robert E. Huse for the 2012 death of his two-month-old son was scheduled for Aug. 1 in Dickson County Circuit Court. But the District Attorney’s Office says there is a conflict with the schedule of a witness during that week. After a mistrial was declared three weeks ago in the trial of 27-year-old Morris Lynn “Moe” Long II for killing his wife, his re-trial was scheduled for Oct. 31. To accommodate the witness, Judge Larry Wallace has agreed to swap the trial dates, moving Long’s first-degree murder trial to Aug. 1 and delaying Huse’s trial for felony murder and aggravated child abuse to Oct. 31. Huse is charged with the death of two-month-old Grayson Michael Sanders from what the medical examiner described as blunt force trauma to the head. The child had been hospitalized for three days with vomiting and a lack of appetite before being discharged. Just hours after leaving the hospital, Huse took the child to the emergency room when he stopped breathing. The death was initially attributed to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome until the medical examiner’s report revealed blunt force trauma to the head was the cause of death and ruled it a homicide. Huse originally was indicted for second-degree murder but a superseding indictment increased the charge to felony murder, a class A felony, and aggravated child abuse. Wallace ruled that the jury will get to hear about a similar incident in which an older child of Huse’s with a different mother suffered a brain bleed and fracture to the back of his head as a result of blunt force trauma while being cared for by Huse. Huse pleaded guilty to accessory to child abuse after the fact and was placed on probation for a year while the child’s mother pleaded guilty to child abuse by failure to protect and served three years on probation, leading to the temporary loss of custody of their children. At the start of last month’s trial in the 2014 death of 21-year-old Ashlee Brook “Sissy” Long, Public Defender Jake Lockert admitted Long beat his wife to death with a hammer. The state argued the death was premeditated for first-degree murder while the defense argued it was an act of passion more appropriate as voluntary manslaughter. On the third day of the trial, a juror’s question to a court officer about whether Long eats his lunch at the jail prompted Wallace to declare a mistrial because the concept that Long is incarcerated could erode the assumption that he is innocent until proven guilty in the minds of jurors who might have overheard the question. Long’s re-trial on a charge of first-degree murder will now be heard starting Aug. 1. The trial of Huse for felony murder and aggravated child abuse will be heard Oct. 31.

Kenneth Ray Niles

The trial of a man accused of murdering a young couple and setting a fire to cover it up has been postponed because his attorney has been suspended from the practice of law. 38-year-old Kenneth Ray Niles of Reeves Street in Dickson was supposed to stand trial Monday for the murders of 27-year-old John Christopher Goldtrap and 23-year-old Lisa Wade Mackenzie McDonald. But that trial has been postponed after the Tennessee Supreme Court suspended the law license of Centerville attorney Kenneth K. Crites for failing to pay the state professional privilege tax. Crites represented Niles at his arraignment in July, entering not guilty pleas to two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of felony murder, aggravated arson, especially aggravated robbery, especially aggravated burglary and theft. But the supreme court suspended the license of Crites and several other Tennessee lawyers in September. Niles was scheduled to appear in court Monday to have a new attorney appointed, but the Dickson County Circuit Court Clerk’s office was not aware that Niles was being held in the Montgomery County Jail and no arrangements were made to transport him from Clarksville for the hearing. A new appearance has been scheduled for June 21 in which an attorney will be appointed and a new trial date set. Niles is accused of shooting Goldtrap and McDonald in the head and then returning to set fire to the McFarland Lane duplex where their bodies were discovered by firefighters April 14, 2015. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says Niles is a cousin by marriage to Goldtrap and the two were involved in an argument the evening prior to the discovery of the bodies. The TBI reports Niles shot both victims and stole several items from the home, then returned early the next morning to set the fire in an apparent attempt to destroy evidence. Niles was arrested May 13, 2015, after a special grand jury returned the eight-count indictment. Niles was being held without bond in the Montgomery County Jail when Judge Suzanne Lockert-Mash rescheduled his trial from Nov. 16 to June 6.

Retired Judge Robert E. Burch will be sworn in today as a special judge specifically to preside over the remaining cases from Operation Pop Smoke. Burch did not seek re-election and retired Sept. 1, 2014, after 34 years on the bench in the 23^rd Judicial District. The Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts agreed to allow Burch to serve one year as a special judge for the five-county district based on the caseload and potential conflicts for the three current judges with the 100 defendants of the drug-trafficking operation. An eight-month investigation into the distribution of methamphetamine started by the 23^rd Judicial District Drug Task Force grew to include 100 defendants in multiple Tennessee counties and three other states. In February a Dickson County Grand Jury returned what is referred to locally as the “century presentment” because it charges 100 people with being part of a conspiracy to manufacture, sell or deliver more than 300 grams of meth, a class A felony, along with other charges. The cases originally were placed on the docket of Judge David Wolfe, who succeeded Burch. Wolfe set a deadline of July 1 for plea bargains and scheduled all the remaining trials to start July 6, saying he would try four defendants at a time in succession. Several defendants already have entered pleas and been sentenced to as much as 30 years in prison. But last month Wolfe granted a defense motion to recuse himself from hearing any more cases related to Operation Pop Smoke because he previously represented the family of one of the defendants in an unrelated matter while in private practice. With remaining judges Suzanne Lockert-Mash and Larry Wallace already facing a full caseload and to avoid any other potential conflicts, the judges decided to ask the AOC for a special judge to be appointed to hear the remaining Pop Smoke cases. The AOC agreed to appoint Burch for a one-year term as a special judge for the 23^rd Judicial District and he is expected to be sworn in today. Burch will begin scheduling court dates for motions, pleas and trials for the remaining cases.

A local organization and Magic Wheels Skating Center are teaming up for a night of skating designed specifically for children with special needs. Dickson County Caring Hearts is an online support group for families with children who have special needs ranging from physical and mental delays and disabilities to autism. In a special event organized with Dickson County Caring Hearts, Magic Wheels at 220 Tennsco Drive will be open 6-8 pm tonight only for children with special needs and their families and caregivers. Admission for the special event is $5 and includes free skate rental. As part of the special accommodations, Kelly Huffine of Magic Wheels says the strobes will be turned off, lighting will be subdued and the music volume will be turned down. The center will allow parents and caregivers to be on the skating floor without skates as long as they wear soft-soled, closed-toe shoes. The center also will allow wheelchairs, strollers and walkers on the skating floor and has a few walkers available for use. For more information on Dickson County Caring Hearts, find its page on Facebook. For more information on tonight’s special event at Magic Wheels, call the center at 615-446-9736.

Backroad Brigade (Dalton Akins, Matt White and Seth Ely) will perform Friday at Jammin’ in June.

Jammin’ in June continues with free music in Holland Park for the next three Fridays. The Dickson Parks and Recreation Department kicked off the summer concert series Memorial Day weekend with the U.S. Air Force Band of Mid-America’s Starlifter. After taking a weekend off due to Dickson County’s Relay for Life last week, the series returns Friday with local rock band Backroad Brigade. The free performance is 6-9 pm Friday in the park next door to the Clement Railroad Hotel Museum. This week’s show kicks off with dance performances from Miss Amy’s Competitive Edge Dance Studio and then features Backroad Brigade. Dickson County residents Dalton Akins on vocals and bass and Matt White on guitar and backup vocals comprise two-thirds of the band that plays guitar-oriented rock and roll that spans the decades from Elvis to Three Doors Down. Jammin’ in June will continue June 17 with Rodeo Gypsy as the featured band and concludes June 24 with a show featuring a collection of local singer/songwriters. Families are invited to bring lawn chairs, blankets, picnics and non-alcoholic beverages to enjoy the free shows. For more information on Jammin’ in June at Holland Park, call the Dickson Parks and Recreation Department at 615-446-1721.

Dickson County will begin funneling some of its court fees to a program designed to advocate for abused and neglected children in the judicial system and will place additional restrictions on the money it gives to the Dickson County Chamber of Commerce under proposals given preliminary approval Monday night. Under a resolution presented at Monday’s work session, the Court Appointed Special Advocate Association of Dickson County, or CASA, could receive up to $10,000 annually starting with the 2016-17 budget. CASA organizations across the country screen, train and support volunteers appointed by courts to advocate for abused and neglected children in the justice system. The volunteers work along with guardians ad litem appointed for children “to make sure they don’t get lost in the overburdened legal and social service system or languish in inappropriate group or foster homes,” according to the National CASA Association website. “Volunteers stay will each case until it is closed and the child is placed in a safe, permanent home,” the website says. A Dickson County chapter of CASA has recently re-organized and has been raising funds before it begins volunteer recruitment and training. Under the resolution presented by Commissioner Booty Reed, CASA of Dickson County will receive $42 from a $45 victims’ assistance fee collected on local court cases up to a maximum of $10,000. CASA will begin receiving a share of the fee after the Child Advocacy Center for the 23^rd Judicial District receives $47,500. CAC, which conducts forensic interviews of children alleged to be victims of neglect or abuse, currently gets $42 of the fee with a projected total of $47,500 for the current fiscal year. The resolution presented Monday says starting with the new budget, CAC will continue to receive $42 of each fee collected up to $47,500 annually. After reaching that amount, $42 of the fee will be distributed to CASA of Dickson County up to $10,000 annually. The remaining $3 of the fee goes to the court clerk’s office for administration of the fees. The resolution states that any fees collected above the $47,500 for CAC and $10,000 for CASA will be held in reserve by the county to use for purposes permitted by the 2007 resolution that authorized the fee. Another resolution presented at the work session places additional restrictions on how the Dickson County Chamber of Commerce can use the money it receives from the county’s hotel/motel tax. In 2007 the commission passed a requirement that 30 percent of those funds be used to promote tourism, which is about $58,500 in the current budget’s contribution of $195,000. Rial said a new resolution will further define how the remaining 70 percent of the county’s contribution will be used with 60 percent, or about $117,000, dedicated to economic and community development and the remaining 10 percent, about $19,500, to be used for other chamber operations. Rial said the economic and community development committee he serves on, along with Dickson Mayor Don Weiss Jr., Dickson County Industrial Development Board Chairman Donald Richardson and the current and immediate past chairmen of the chamber’s board, wants to provide more definition of the director’s job and chamber mission. “I think we need to be accountable for each dollar on that. That way we can measure him and his success and the chamber’s success in economic and community development and tourism by defining these funds,” Rial said. The mayor said a resolution will be presented at the commission’s upcoming regular session. With three members absent and the 4^th District seat vacant, the eight commission members present voted unanimously to forward both resolutions to the June 20 regular session for final approval. The changes will take effect with the new budget starting July 1.

The Dickson County Commission will postpone a public hearing and vote on its 2016-17 budgets until its July meeting to allow time to review the school system budget and because it has not yet received a budget proposal from the Dickson County Public Library. At Monday night’s meeting of the commission’s Budget and Budget Advisory committees, Mayor Bob Rial said despite a statutory requirement under the Fiscal Control Act of 1957 that all departments submit their budget requests by April 1, he still has not received a 2016-17 budget from the library. Because dealing with that issue has prevented Rial and Accounts and Budgets Director Don Hall from taking a close look at the schools budget submitted last week, the mayor said he will push the scheduled vote on all the county’s budgets from June 20 to July 5. Rial had hoped to have all the budgets approved and the tax rate set before the end of the fiscal year June 30. But in order to have “time to do our due diligence,” Rial said he will push the vote to a special session of the commission to be held in conjunction with next month’s work session, which is being moved to Tuesday, July 5, due to the Independence Day holiday. On that night, the Budget Committee will hold a public hearing on the proposed budgets and then meet to discuss any changes. If they are ready, the budgets will then be moved on to the full commission for approval. At this month’s meeting, the commission will have to vote to operate on a continuation of its current budget beyond the end of the fiscal year until the new budget is approved. Because he has not received a proposal from the library, Rial said his office is working with the numbers from the current year’s budget for the new fiscal year. He said if the library’s board wants to make any changes, they will have to be considered as an amendment to the budget after it is passed. With Director of Schools Dr. Danny Weeks out of town for mandatory training, Director of Student Services Steve Sorrells presented the school system’s budget proposal to the committees Monday. The $65.3 million general purpose school fund is up $2 million over the amended current budget and proposes to use $2.5 million from reserves to balance. Rial said a re-assessment of residential properties in the county has caused the overall value of a penny of the tax rate to increase. Because of that, the county will be given a lower tax rate that will generate the same overall amount of revenue as the county’s current $2.90 per $100 of assessed value. Rial said Assessor of Property Gail Wren does not yet have the final certified rate for the county. Rial also told the six commissioners present for the budget meeting that a new law dictates that if the commission and school board reach an impasse over a budget, then the previous year’s budget will remain in effect to keep schools from closing. Unable to reach budget agreements, several school systems across the state, including Dickson County in 2010, have faced the possibility of not receiving Basic Education Program funding because a local budget is not approved, which would force school systems to shut down. The commission’s Budget and Budget Advisory committees will meet again at 6:30 pm June 20 prior to the commission’s regular session. The current plan is to hold a public hearing on the budgets and vote on them July 5.

The Dickson County 911 Committee’s decision to begin charging all municipalities for dispatch services continues to draw objections from some town officials. The 2016-17 budget approved on first reading by the White Bluff Town Council includes $23,000 as the town’s first annual payment, but at least one council member wants to look into opting out of its agreement. The budget presented to the council Tuesday night includes $18,000 in the police department and $5,000 in the fire department for “county 911 service.” According to a notice given to all of the county’s municipalities earlier this year, the 911 committee has decided to assess a cost to each town based on the average number of calls dispatched to their emergency services agencies over the last five years. The committee is phasing in the payments with 50 percent due in 2016-17, 75 percent the following year and then 100 percent in the 2018-19 fiscal year based on a rate of cost per call. Since a centralized dispatch was created with the Enhanced 911 system about 30 years ago, the city of Dickson and Dickson County have split the cost of the personnel and operation of the communications center that is operated by the city of Dickson. A fee attached to every phone number assigned to Dickson County pays for the 911 system equipment and network. Local tax dollars pay the almost $1 million cost of personnel to answer those calls and the equipment used to dispatch the information to the various law enforcement, fire, medical and other emergency services in the county. The 911 committee is requiring each municipality to begin paying for the cost of dispatching calls to their agencies. Burns Mayor Landon Mathis has been a vocal opponent of the new fee assessment, discussing the possibility of opting out of the town’s interlocal agreement to be a part of the 911 system. Any municipality that pulls out of the agreement would have to come up with its own system to receive 911 calls and dispatch its emergency responders. “I think we should look into that,” said Councilman Brandon Gossett, who suggested that the town of White Bluff talk with Mathis and Burns officials to see what they are planning to do as an alternative to being part of the 911 system. White Bluff Fire Department Chief Eric Deal said the 911 committee is basing its cost to each town on numbers it is “pulling out of the air,” and Gossett called them “fabricated.” Deal claims the numbers the 911 committee is using to assess the fees are “double” what the department shows it received. “They have a number they want to take in from the municipalities and they come up with a way to get it,” Deal said. Councilwoman Connie Reed asked why the cost of dispatching isn’t covered by taxes. “That’s the biggest thing I have about it. It is the county taxes and why can’t our county taxes – because we don’t really get anything else out of those county taxes – pay for that,” Reed said. While she did not have any estimates, Mayor Linda Hayes said it would cost the town more to set up the equipment and personnel to operate a 24-hour-a-day dispatch center. The council approved the budgets on first reading on a voice vote with Gossett not casting a vote for or against and Martha Beth Harding absent. Hayes asked council members to take the next month to review the $2.3 million general fund budget, $87,000 state street aid budget and $12,000 drug fund budget before they face a public hearing and second and final vote at the July 5 meeting.

There is a special prize for anyone who catches this albino catfish stocked by TWRA for the Kids Fishing Rodeo Saturday at City Lake.

Saturday is the annual free fishing day across the state of Tennessee and the Dickson Parks and Recreation Department, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and National Wild Turkey Federation are sponsoring the annual Kids Fishing Rodeo. The free rodeo begins at 6 am at City Lake on the north side of Highway 70 at J. Dan Buckner Park. The event is free for toddlers to age 15. Parents are asked to bring their children by the main tent near Weaver Drive to register for the rodeo. There is a weigh-in at 8 am and there will be prizes for largest fish caught in several age groups. There also are several door prizes to be given away in drawings and included in the fish stocked by TWRA is an albino catfish for which there is a special prize for anyone who catches it. Donuts and beverages are provided by Traditions First Bank. The National Wild Turkey Federation and Double D Outdoors also will have tents. For more information on the Kids Fishing Rodeo, call the parks department at 615-446-1721. Children 15 and under can fish without a license for the entire week starting on Free Fishing Day through the next Friday. Children under 13 can fish without a license year ’round. The TWRA sponsors many free fishing day events and stocks thousands of pounds of catfish in selected area lakes and ponds for the day. The Free Fishing Day on Saturday applies only to public waters, TWRA-owned and operated waters and state park facilities. For a list of events and more information, visit tn.gov/twra.

The Goodwill Career Solutions Center in Dickson will hold a job fair Tuesday for a company seeking prisoner transportation officers. The job fair will be 10 am-2 pm Tuesday at the center at 543 Highway 46 South, next door to the Goodwill store. Nashville-based TransCor America is seeking to fill five prisoner transportation officer positions. A wholly owned subsidiary of Corrections Corporation of America, TransCor is the largest and most experienced detainee/prisoner transportation company in the U.S. Founded in 1990, it was acquired by CCA in 1994. Transportation officers escort male and female, juvenile and adult detainees and prisoners across the country by land and charter aircraft. TransCor America officer’s pay is $32,306.70 annual salary plus per diem allowances for travel and opportunities for bonuses. The company is headquartered at 646 Melrose Avenue in Nashville. Those interested in applying for one of the available positions should bring a resume, photo identification and Social Security card or birth certificate to the Career Solutions Center Tuesday and be prepared for an interview. For more information on TransCor America, visit transcor.com. For more information on Tuesday’s job fair, visit goodwillcareersolutions.org or call 615-740-1217.

The budget approved on first reading by the White Bluff Town Council shows an increase of $216,000 in expenses but does not call for an increase in property taxes. In fact, the new budget reduces the town’s property tax rate from 50.17 cents to 45.74 cents per $100 of assessed value due to overall increases in property appraisals. The new tax rate is projected to bring in about $280,000 in revenue, less than $6,000 more than the current fiscal year. Mayor Linda Hayes presented the 2016-17 budgets to the council for approval on the first of two required readings Tuesday night. A public hearing and final vote will be next month. “Primarily due to an improving economy, this proposed general fund budget shows projected revenue increases in the areas of sales tax and construction-based income, while revenue associated with property tax and business permitting remains strong,” Hayes said. The mayor said no increase in healthcare costs and lower fuel prices have helped offset higher insurance rates and utility expenses. Hayes said the town was able to absorb the new $23,000 expense for 911 dispatch services by shifting unused salaries in the street department to the police and fire department budgets. But she said when the dispatch fee reaches 100 percent cost in two years it could present more of a challenge. She said there are no new positions in the budget but it does account for the planned transition with Carol Harmon retiring and Dixie Kerr stepping up as municipal court clerk and deputy town recorder. The budget includes a 75 cents-per-hour increase for all full-time employees. Councilman Brandon Gossett objected to the new 911 dispatch expense and suggested the town look at other options. When Councilwoman Connie Reed asked if the membership dues for the Dickson County Chamber of Commerce were included, Gossett said, “As far as I’m concerned, that can go away, too.” The general fund budget projects revenues growing $230,000 to $2,309,096, while expenses are up $216,000 to $2,294,724, leaving a surplus of $14,372 to be added to the town’s fund balance.. The proposed state street aid budget includes no paving projects for the coming fiscal year and still uses $37,000 to pay half of the town’s cost for street lights with $50,000 budgeted for repair and maintenance, leaving a little more than $55,000 to start building for paving in the following budget. The drug fund budget proposes using $7,800 to pay for the police department’s electronic citation system and $4,920 to make payments on patrol cars. The council approved the budgets on first reading by a voice vote with Gossett not voting and Martha Beth Harding absent. Hayes asked the council to review the budgets closely before a public hearing and final vote are held at the council’s July 5 meeting.

Isiah Jaypaul Primm

Jonathan Keith Hughes, Jr.

Kurtis Lamar Primm

The deadly April shooting in Charlotte apparently resulted from a disagreement over a $200 debt from a drug transaction, according to testimony in a preliminary hearing for the three defendants. Despite having been indicted by the Dickson County Grand Jury on charges of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder, the three defendants requested preliminary hearings. The cases were remanded back to Dickson County General Sessions Court where a preliminary hearing was held Thursday under heightened security. 28-year-old Kurtis Lamar Primm, Isiah Jaypaul Primm, who turns 24 Wednesday, and Jonathan Keith Hughes, who turns 28 June 20, wore bullet-proof vests in addition to leg and waist chains while deputies equipped in vests were stationed around the courtroom and spectators were searched with a metal-detecting wand at the door. During 90 minutes on the witness stand, Kenny Flanagan testified he drove the three suspects from Dickson to Charlotte where he understood Isiah Primm and Quintin Tidwell were going to fight over a “prior disagreement” about $200 from a drug deal. Flanagan said he was at Primm’s home April 12 smoking marijuana when Primm “seemed upset” after getting a phone call. Flanagan said he and Primm went to Kurtis Primm’s home where he first met Hughes and the four of them headed to Charlotte with Kurtis Primm driving a motorcycle and the other three in a blue Impala. Flanagan said he saw Hughes and Isiah Primm with semiautomatic pistols and has seen Kurtis Primm with a pistol before but did not see one that day, although Primm was carrying a backpack. On the way to Charlotte, Primm wrecked the motorcycle near Jones Creek Road and rode the rest of the way in the Impala. Flanagan said he was told to pull into the parking lot at Duke’s Market on Highway 48 where the other three got out of the car, told him to park on Corlew Street and headed down a path behind the market that leads through the woods to the picnic grounds. Under questioning by Assistant District Attorney Carey Thompson, Flanagan confirmed he told detectives that Isiah Primm made statements that he was “gonna whoop his ass” and “going to catch a body” during the drive to Charlotte. After parking on Corlew Street, Flanagan said he heard 10-20 gunshots and the Primms and Hughes came running back to the car. He said they were “frantic” and told him to drive, and that Isiah Primm was missing his shirt and did not have his gun. Flanagan said he drove the men to a home in White Bluff and on the way he felt threatened when Hughes made statements that he “needed to tie up loose ends” and “trim the fat.” Flanagan admitted that he is testifying against the defendants as part of an agreement with the district attorney’s office not to be charged with being an accessory to murder. TBI Special Agent Shawn Adkins testified Montae Springer, who survived nine bullet wounds, told agents that Kurtis Primm shot him and he saw Isiah Primm shoot Tidwell. Adkins said Tidwell was shot five times and was dead at the scene in Charlotte. Springer was flown from the Charlotte Ballpark to Vanderbilt University Medical Center where he underwent surgery. Adkins said Springer was released from the hospital but was re-admitted Monday due to complications. Adkins said 23-year-old Marcedez Teroy Bell was shot 6-7 times inside his car and drove away from the scene before crashing into a tree on Dotson Street. He was taken to Horizon Medical Center where he died. Adkins said the TBI Mobile Crime Scene Unit recovered a 9-millimeter pistol, 21 shell casings, a shirt and a shoe from the scene. He said it is not clear whether Bell was called to the scene or drove up on it but there were several bullet holes in his Dodge Charger. Defense attorney Mike Love asked Adkins if he knew that Isiah Primm was shot on April 12, to which the agent said he did not. Love did not offer any information about his client’s alleged wounding and there has been no information from investigators about any injury he might have suffered. Love also asked Adkins about the extensive criminal histories of the three alleged victims, including rumors that they might have been involved in a previous shooting in Dickson. The three defense attorneys did not call any witnesses during the two-and-a-half hour hearing. Isiah Primm and Hughes remain in the Dickson County Jail while Kurtis Primm is being held in Montgomery County. All three are held on $1 million bonds and their trial is set for April 24, 2017.

Polly Spencer

Dickson County Director of Schools Dr. Danny Weeks has named Polly Spencer as the new principal of Creek Wood High School. Spencer has been assistant principal at Creek Wood and becomes the school’s fourth principal in its 14-year history. She replaced Dr. Andrew Williams, who left after two years to return to Utah to become principal at a charter performing arts high school. Corey Duke was Creek Wood’s principal 2010-14 after Janie Jones was the school’s first leader. A Springfield High School graduate, Spencer earned her Bachelor’s degree from Middle Tennessee State University in 1997 and received her Master’s degree from Trevecca Nazarene University in 2005. A Burns resident, Spencer’s promotion leaves a vacancy for assistant principal at Creek Wood, which has not been posted on the school system’s website as of Friday morning. Misty Meadows and Marcus Peters were named assistant principals at Creek Wood last year. Today at 3 pm is the deadline for applications for principal positions at Dickson and Charlotte middle schools. The vacancies were created when Dr. Robbie Faulkner was named director of Secondary Education and Ray Lecomte was named coordinator of Career and Technical Education. Weeks also has not named a principal for the new Dickson Intermediate School, which is the former Dickson Middle School 6^th Grade Annex that becomes a stand-alone school for sixth graders this fall.

Dickson County Transportation Coordinator Melissa Garton (left) introduces Joyce Stacey (right) as the newest member of the Tennessee School Bus Hall of Fame.

Former Dickson County school system bus driver Joyce Stacey was recently named to the Tennessee School Bus Hall of Fame. Stacey retired at the end of the school year after driving a school bus for 46 years. The addition of Stacey to the Hall of Fame was announced last week at the Tennessee Association of Pupil Transportation President’s Awards Dinner in the Symphony Hall at the Music Road Hotel Convention Center in Pigeon Forge. As the 2016 inductee, Stacey becomes the fifth member and first woman inducted into the Hall of Fame that began inductions in 2013. Born at home in White Bluff along with twin sister, Lois, Stacey is one of 10 children of Irene and Orville England. She and husband, Fred Stacey, have three daughters and have opened their home to several foster children. She began as a substitute bus driver before becoming a full-time driver in April 1970. She has won numerous awards, including Bus Driver of the Month several times along with a number of perfect attendance awards. She was honored for her service as a bus driver in a resolution presented in the Tennessee General Assembly by Rep. David Shepard in 2011.