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CLICK to listen LIVE to 1450 WLAF CLICK to watch LIVE WLAF-TV 12
TERRY’S TIME & TEMP Line 423.566.TIME…566.8463 (a service of Terry’s Pharmacy)
Photo from home Chamber of Commerce Director E.L. Morton joined Bushtec manager Keith Simpson for a ribbon cutting held at Bushtec on Friday. Bushtec Corporation is among the nation’s leading motorcycle trailer manufacturers and recently joined the Campbell County Chamber of Commerce. The company also makes Trigg Trikes conversion kits, as well as Bunkhouse motorcycle campers. (CHARLOTTE UNDERWOOD PIX)
Early voting is 9:00-4:00 Monday at Jacksboro and 9:00-2:00 at Jellico Finals ‘14 – The 2014
Election Returns from WLAF is presented by: Attorney Greg Leach of Sexton, Sexton, and Leach
Attorneys-Oneida 423.569.8341
Zach Sheets with Edward Jones Investments 423.566.4010 First National Bank 423.566.1624 - next to Subway on the four-lane Beacon Finance "where pigs fly" on North Tennessee Avenue State Farm Agent Tabatha Smith in the Fleet Building in La Follette Attorney David H. Dunaway 423.562.7085 Holston Gases - Jacksboro - 423.562.7596 The Gray Insurance Agency where "Nationwide is on your side" Police called to quiet attorney squabble The call came in
just before 3:00 p.m. this afternoon that two attorneys were fighting.
Deputies were called to the upstairs courtroom at the courthouse at
Jacksboro to find two attorneys in what officials describe to WLAF News
as “verbal chatter.” One officer tells WLAF that while the judge
was out of the courtroom, opposing attorneys Steve Hurst and Kristie
Anderson began exchanging words. That’s when officers were called.
The pair of attorneys was in court representing a couple in a custody
dispute.
Tornado clean-up in progress; could take weeks By Charlotte Underwood The roof from Jim Mullens home was scattered up in trees and along a fence row. The van and antique hay rake that had been parked behind his house was moved about 150 yards away. His was one of two homes in the county declared a total loss. The tornado left the small bird house mounted on a pole beside his home perfectly intact. He had just left his home when the tornado hit. He said from looking at the house afterwards there is no doubt in his mind had they been home they would have been killed.
Brush and other debris are piled along Old Highway 63 going up the valley. The county highway department has already hauled away over 80 loads of brush. "There's no way we could have survived the damage. The debris, the condition of the house, we couldn't have survived, but we are all healthy and that’s all that matters; houses can be rebuilt,” Mullens said the day after the storm. Mullens was among the 10 or so property owners who sustained damage to their homes located along the Campbell and Claiborne County line when the EF3 tornado ravaged the area on Sunday evening. From uprooted trees, to ripped off roofs and collapsed barns, hundreds of thousands of dollars of property damage was done by the tornado, which was about a half-mile wide, according to the National Weather Service. Now that the storm is over, the clean-up process is in full-swing, as is the damage evaluation process. While some property owners are making smaller claims like water damage and roof damage such as missing shingles, others are reporting total losses.
Tony Malone with the
Highway Department works to cut a tree up off of Because of the severity of Sunday night's storms, insurance company Farm Bureau set up a Catastrophe Response Unit from Lenoir City in Campbell County on Monday. Farm Bureau Claims Representative Mark Brown said the company was in the process of getting claims filed so the people could get the help they needed to start rebuilding. "Anytime you have damage like what was done on Sunday, it will most likely get this unit activated," said Brown, adding that adjustors were still receiving claims from the area and that it was still too early to have a monetary number as far as damage went. According to insurance adjustors, local utility
company workers and just about anybody else you ask, there hasn’t been a
storm of this magnitude in the area for years. The tornado snapped
electric poles resulting in mass power outages. According to La
Follette Utility Department General Manager Kenny Baird the number of
power outages was upwards of 4,000 at the height of Sunday's storm and
tornado. That’s close to a fifth of LUB’s 22,000 total number of
customers. Baird said crews have worked feverously to erect more
than 12 power poles, clean up wire, conduct safety checks, and restore
power non-stop since the first calls came in around 6:30 p.m. Sunday
evening. According to Emergency Management Director Jay
Muncy, two houses were declared a total loss; three others sustained
major damage, while the remaining four reported minor damage. The
largest part of the clean-up is centering on the mass amount of broken
branches and downed trees. “We have a lot of debris that has to be hauled
away; it will probably take weeks, Muncy said. Despite all this damage, not one injury was
reported. “It truly was a miracle; all you have to do is go
and look at the damage that was done and the fact that no one got hurt
is a miracle,” said County Mayor William Baird.
Volunteers and agencies extend aid for tornado
victims Volunteers and local agencies have arrived in the county to help clean up after the storm and provide aid to tornado victims. From a retired group of veterans called the Rubicon Team to volunteers from Mennonite Amish community in Middle Tennessee, people from all over are extending helping hands to those who need it in our community. Local restaurants have sent food and Home Depot has even sent tarps, water and garbage bags to help with the clean-up effort. County Road Superintendent Dennis Potter’s crews have been working endlessly to remove brush and La Follette Mayor Mike Stanfield offered the city’s street department crews and trucks to help as well. The night of the storm, members of the La Follette Police Department were out after dark operating chain saws and removing trees. The Campbell County Sheriff’s Department has provided aid in various ways as well, including inmates who have been busy clearing brush since Tuesday.
Three days after the
tornado struck, areas along the “I bet they’ve already hauled off over 80 loads of brush,” said Glennis Monday with the Campbell County Sheriff’s Department. While clean-up efforts continue, volunteers who have traveled to the area to help are being housed at the old West La Follette School where showers and living quarters of a sort have been set up to make their stay more comfortable. “People have really pulled together to help one another during this devastating time which has affected some of our residents,” said County Mayor William Baird, adding that all of the local agencies had worked together wonderfully to make it “as easy as possible for those who fell victim to the tornado to get their lives back together.” During this time of devastation, Baird said several agencies are offering aid to those affected by the tornado. The East Tennessee Foundation program Neighbors to Neighbors is providing small grants varying from $100 to $500 to help tornado victims with their immediate needs, such as food or clothes.
Members of Christian
Aid Ministry out of “It’s pretty devastating to have your whole life change and everything you own gone in just a matter of minutes; these agencies want to help where they can,” Baird said. Katie Moore with the Tennessee Housing Development Agency (THDA) is expected to arrive in the county today to travel to the tornado site to assess the damage and make a report. According to the county mayor, THDA has a program called Rebuild and Recover which will help pay for whatever the insurance companies don’t cover on up to 25 houses. Tornado victims needing aid from the East Tennessee
Foundation can contact Trudy Hughs toll-free by calling 1-877-524-1223.
Those needing assistance from the Tennessee Housing Development Agency
can contact Katie Moore at 1-865-210-7591.
“Stand-off” suspect pleads guilty to theft
over $10,000 By Charlotte Underwood The man who allegedly had a two-day stand-off with
the Campbell County Sheriff’s Department pleaded guilty to theft $10,000
to $60,000 in criminal court this week. James Clifford Thomas, 34, was
sentenced to three years for the theft which occurred in early June.
However, when Thomas was arrested, it violated a 10-year probation he
had been given in July of 2013 for previous burglaries, thefts and
vandalisms. The recent violation voided his 10-year probation and turned
it into a 10-year jail sentence, according to court officials. Since the
judge ordered the sentences to be served concurrent rather than
consecutive, Thomas is supposed to serve 10 years, rather than 13.
According to criminal court officials, Thomas has been remanded to the
Tennessee Department of Corrections to serve his sentence. After a stand-off with the Campbell County
Sheriff’s Department in which he refused to come out of his mother’s
house, Thomas was arrested on June 8 and charged with theft over
$10,000, vandalism over $5,000, two counts of felony evading arrest, two
counts of operating an ATV on the road, two counts of violation of the
helmet law, two counts of driving on a revoked license, resisting stop,
halt, frisk orders, possession of a schedule VI controlled substance and
possession of drug paraphernalia. After his June arrest, Thomas filed a $750,000
lawsuit on the sheriff’s department and county, saying his civil rights
had been violated. Dave Dunaway is his lawyer in the case.
Early voting is 9:00-4:00 Thursday at Jacksboro and 9:00-2:00 at Jellico Finals ‘14 – The 2014
Election Returns from WLAF is presented by:
Attorney Greg Leach of Sexton, Sexton, and Leach
Attorneys-423.569.8341
Zach Sheets with Edward Jones Investments 423.566.4010 First National Bank 423.566.1624 - next to Subway on the four-lane Beacon Finance "where pigs fly" on North Tennessee Avenue State Farm Agent Tabatha Smith in the Fleet Building in La Follette Attorney Dave Dunaway 423.562.7085 - 97th Celebration at La Follette Church of God Holston Gases - Jacksboro - 423.562.7596 The Gray Insurance Agency where "Nationwide is on your side" Community Trust Bank "building communities built on trust"
Sheriff and police reports By Charlotte Underwood La Follette man arrested for burglary
On July 26, a La Follette man was arrested on
burglary charges after La Follette Police Officers received a call about
a burglary in progress on Rose Hill and arrived to catch the man with a
box of VHS movies in his hands. When Emanuel S. Peters, 47, saw
officers approaching, he allegedly dropped the box of movies and took
off running down the hill. Officers caught him about 75 yards away and
had to use force to detain him, the police report said. When officers
had first came on the scene, there were two juveniles with Peters, with
one of the juveniles carrying a black trash bag. According to the
report, Peters had gone into the house and came back out with the box
and the trash bag which contained movies, a scale, a flashlight, two
cable boxes and an iron. The juvenile holding the trash bag told
officers Peters had asked him to hold it. Peters was charged with aggravated burglary,
evading arrest, resisting arrest, theft under $500 and criminal
impersonation as well as he did not give his true name or date of birth
when he was first arrested.
Duff man arrested for stealing copper Duff man Samson Joseph Marlow, 28, was arrested on
July 25 after sheriff’s deputies received a report that he and another
man were stealing cable from a La Follette Utilities job site in White
Oak. When the deputy arrived on the scene, he stopped the two men who
were still walking from the job site. A witness identified the men as
those who had stolen the copper and also showed the deputy a cell phone
photo of the theft in progress. Marlow was charged with theft of
property $500 to $999 and vandalism over $1,000.
La Follette man arrested on drug charges La Follette man Robert
Ray Martin, 45, was arrested on July 29 after deputies observed his
vehicle stopped in the middle of the road on Peel is the new JMS coach. Miller
moves on to Jellico. Habitat Re-store seeks new location; everything currently half off By Charlotte Underwood After learning it was losing its lease, the Habitat for Humanity Re-store located in Woodson’s Mall is currently seeking a new location to set up shop. In the mean-time, everything in the store is 50-percent off, according to store manager Jeanne Smith, who said the store would be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through the rest of the week until Saturday. Volunteers will use Sunday and Monday to pack up what’s left until another location can be found. They have until Aug. 6 to be out of the space. Smith said she in no way blamed landlord Rob Woodson, who had been “more than kind.” “I don’t blame Rob a bit; he has been so good to us the past nine years letting us be here rent free; he had the opportunity to sign a ten-year lease on the space and that’s just business,” Smith said. The Habitat for Humanity Re-store needs about 4,000 square foot of space to set up shop again, according to Smith who said it would be great if someone wanted to help them out and lease space as a tax write-off or even a partial tax write-off. “We could pay some rent, but we are limited,” Smith explained, adding that she and the other Habitat volunteers hoped to be settled into a new space as quickly as possible. For more information or to contact Smith about possibly leasing space to Habitat, call 423-201-0572 or 423-566-2031. (07/29/2014 - 6:00 AM) Chickens in the city? By Charlotte Underwood Chickens in the city or no chickens in the city?
That is the question a recent poll conducted by La Follette officials
attempted to answer. The results of the poll were shared during a city
council workshop held yesterday evening. Codes Enforcer Stan Foust
announced the results to Mike Stanfield and Vice Mayor Joe Bolinger, as
they were the only members of the council present at the workshop.
According to Foust, poll results showed 92 property owners were against
chickens in the city, while 12 voted yes. There were also 22 votes cast
that were disqualified due to the voters not living in the city. Of
those disqualified 17 were no votes, while five were yes votes,
according to Foust.
Mayor Mike Stanfield and Vice Mayor Joe Bolinger were the only two members present at yesterday evening’s La Follette City Council Workshop. Results of the chicken poll were briefly discussed and placed on the agenda for next week’s meeting, which was moved to Aug. 4. La Follette resident
Jean Hopkins had brought the issue before the council several months ago
when she petitioned the city to allow her to keep six laying hens in a
coop. “People will want to
keep goats and horses in the city next,” Foust said in an earlier city
council meeting. Poll results and the continuing issue of whether or
not chickens should be allowed to be kept in the city will be placed on
next week’s agenda. Other business discussed during the workshop which
will also be included on next week’s agenda is the contract regarding
the proposed ice skating rink La Follette voted to help rent for the
holidays. Stanfield asked if the city’s insurance covered the skating
rink. City Attorney Reid Troutman said the insurance company would need
to be contacted and would have to provide in writing that the city would
be covered. It was also decided to
hold the Tuesday Aug 5th
meeting on Monday, Aug. 4 so it does not interfere with the National
Night Out event being held in downtown. Court appearance reset for those connected in child’s death By Charlotte Underwood The couple charged in connection with three-year-old Gabriella Orton’s death had their court appearance reset for Oct. 27. Joshua Adam Comer, who is
charged with first-degree felony murder, and Amber Leann Orton-Resentez,
who is charged with aggravated child abuse and neglect, were both
scheduled to appear in criminal court Monday morning to have their case
set for status. When Judge Shayne Sexton called Comer’s name, his
lawyer, Dale Potter approached the bench and said there had been some
kind of miscommunication or mix-up and that Comer had not been
transferred from “He may have a reason for
him being housed so remote and far away,” Sexton said. Assistant
District Attorney General Scarlet Ellis said she believed Despite being held in The state turned over initial discovery to the defense Monday morning, including 8,000 pages of information and 50 CDs of various interviews from the investigation. The state is seeking the death penalty in Comer’s case and Orton-Resentez’s charges are a class A felony, punishable by a minimum of 15 to 25 years in prison, according to District Attorney General Lori Phillips-Jones. Comer remains in custody on a $1 million bond and Orton-Resentez remains in jail on a $750,000 bond. Gabriella Orton was brought
to Jason Crabb to perform at La Follette Church in August Jason Crabb will be headlining the 97th Celebration weekend at the La Follette Church of God in August. The three-day event begins on Friday, Aug. 15, with Crabb’s performance slated for Saturday, Aug. 16 at 7 p.m. He will also provide praise music that Sunday. It will be his second
performance in the area. Over 900 people attended Jason Crabb’s first
concert when he appeared for a fundraiser on behalf of the Before his concert
appearance on Saturday, Crabb will appear at
Gifts From Above
for a book signing of his book “Trusting God to Get You Through,”
lessons that he said he learned through the fire about grace, loss and
love. Everyone is invited to a book signing to meet and greet Jason Crabb on Saturday, August 16 beginning at 1:00 p.m. at Gifts From Above located immediately West of the La Follette Church of God where he will perform in concert later that evening. J.B. and Tina Purdie, owners of Gifts From Above, gifts and bookstore, have opened their doors and are welcoming the entire La Follette community to join them as a part of the 97th Celebration Weekend featuring Jason Crabb, as well as the new rising trio of Highroad III and Dr. Mark Williams, for whom Crabb will be providing the opening praise music the following day on Sunday, August 17. One ticket for $20.00 will
provide entry for all three concerts beginning Friday, August 15,
Saturday, August 16, and Sunday, August 17. Tickets for the 97th
Celebration Weekend may be purchased at
Gifts From Above,
1926 Jacksboro Pike, La Follette, La Follette Church of God, 1906
Jacksboro Pike where the concerts will be held, or from the All proceeds from the sale of tickets will go to the La Follette Church of God. Seating is limited, tickets are limited, and Pastor Sonny Wilkes encourages everyone that is interested to purchase their tickets to ensure a seat for this wonderful three-day event. Doors will open at 6:00 p.m. on August 15 and 16 and 10:00 a.m. on August 17. (07/29/2014 - 6:00 AM) One family's home is spared Brian Hatmaker’s always been a storm lover. And Sunday evening at 6:05 p.m., he and his family lived through a very scary twenty-seconds of what looks to’ve been either straight-line winds or a tornado.
You can see the top of the red family car that was not damaged Hatmaker was outside when he heard and saw trees snapping and falling all around him. He quickly ducked back into his home of almost a month and huddled with his wife and daughters in the bath tub.
Trees in the storm's path were snapped on the other side of the Hatmaker's home He says his excitement to be in the middle of a storm of this magnitude quickly turned to concern for his wife Amanda and their daughters, Kateline age 11 and 6-year old Kayla. WLAF's David Graham & Jim Freeman visit with storm victim Brian Hatmaker <> Hatmaker tells WLAF
that the wind blew from the northwest right next to his home on
The Hatmaker's driveway Luckily, Heather had hunkered down in her dog house and was OK.
The huge fallen tree is to the left of the family car, Heather's dog house, and the Hatmaker home Countless trees were
knocked over, torn in half, or like the 80-footer, about 20-feet from
the Hatmaker home, knocked flat down.
La Follette Police hosting handgun safety
classes By Charlotte Underwood
The La Follette Police Department is hosting free
handgun safety classes on Monday evenings beginning today at 4 p.m. and
running through Aug. 25. The class will be a basic handgun
familiarization and safety course open to the general public free of
charge, according to La Follette Police Chief Jimmy Jeffries. The
inspiration behind hosting the class came from the fact that the police
department and police in general often get asked a lot of questions
about firearms and also a general concern that some may own guns but not
be very familiar with them. “There are people who may
go out and purchase a gun after hearing about some of the bad things
that happen on the news and then they get home with that gun and perhaps
tuck it into a dresser drawer and never touch it again; we want to help
the public familiarize themselves with the weapon they have purchased as
a courtesy and to help prevent possible accidents that could result from
a lack of gun safety information,” Jeffries said. Each two-hour class is
designed to give the student basic familiarity with their handguns, as
well as pertinent safety information on handling, usage and storage of
the weapon. “Some people get a gun and
may not have ever even fired it,” Jeffries said, adding that this class
would be especially good for someone who needed a basic handgun course. La Follette Mayor Mike Stanfield
said he too felt the class was needed and was glad the police department
was undertaking such a civic task. “I think it is great that
they are doing this. If you are going to own a gun, then it is important
that you know how to safely handle that gun,” Stanfield said, adding
that he hoped the class would help gun owners be safer and perhaps
prevent future accidents. Jeffries said if this
first run of classes is well attended, then the department would most
likely host future classes as early as the spring, with it possibly
becoming a yearly service. The class will be on a
first come first served basis and spots are limited, according to
Jeffries, who encouraged those interested to register early. The class
will end with students firing 50 rounds of ammunition at the firing
range. Each student will need to bring an unloaded handgun and 50
rounds of ammunition. Those participating will meet at the police
station and travel to the firing range for classes. For more information or to
register for this class, contact the police department at 423-562-8331.
Hear Hatfield here La Follette’s Keith Hatfield, who grew up a stone’s throw from WLAF, hosts his very own sports talk show Friday afternoons over his hometown radio station, 1450 WLAF. “Hatfield” as he’s referenced by Tony Basilio cranks up his fun couple of hours on the radio every Friday from 1:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m. on WLAF Welcome aboard, Hatfield! (07/24/2014) Granny’s Old Fashion Café serves up home-cooked meals and hand-made desserts By Charlotte Underwood If good old fashioned home cooking and hand-made desserts are what you’re hungry for, check out Granny’s Old Fashion Café. Located up the valley, near the county line at 5782 Gen. Carl Stiner Highway, the restaurant opened just this past week. Granny’s offers a large variety of breakfast, lunch and dinner menu items. From the traditional staples of burgers and fries to deli sandwiches, the restaurant also serves soup beans, chili, deep-fried tenderloin, chicken dinners, Ribeye dinners and much more. For the hotdog connoisseurs out there, Granny’s has a deep fried hotdog with bacon and krout that is becoming a local favorite. Another favorite is fish-fries, according to the owners, who said an all-you-can-eat fish fry is planned for Aug. 8, beginning at 5 p.m. Customers can enjoy all the catfish, hushpuppies, fries, coleslaw and sweet or un-sweet tea they can eat and drink for $10, dine-in only. And don’t worry about having a place to sit as the restaurant has seating and over flow capacity for about 200 people. Granny’s also has daily lunch specials for $6.75.
Home to one of the best hamburgers around, Granny’s Old Fashion Café also has a full menu of items including hotdogs, sandwiches, dinners, desserts and much more. Owned and operated by three sisters who know the ins and outs of a kitchen, Granny’s Old Fashion Café uses only the finest ingredients and choice cuts of meat. “We purchase all of our meat from Hollingsworth Meat Market in La Follette and try to get the best to serve to our customers,” said co-owner Thelma Welden. She and her sisters Alice Haulbrook and Janice Wilson run the restaurant and do all the cooking. Each has their own special area of expertise to round out the business. Haulbrook makes delicious and picturesque desserts, while Wilson’s meatloaf and lasagna are supposed to be out of this world.
Granny’s Old Fashion
Café is located at “We do Janice’s meatloaf on Mondays and we can’t make enough of the stuff to sell; we always run out of it,” Welden said, adding that her other sister’s cakes sometimes never even made it to the kitchen. “She brought an apple cake in here and a customer offered her $25 on the spot and bought it before she could even carry it back,” Welden said. Whole cakes are available for purchase, with prices varying depending upon the cake, but orders must be placed one to two days in advance. Haulbrook also makes cobblers and pies and the restaurant offers hand-made milkshakes as well. Welden enjoys cooking as well, but her favorite part of the business is the customers.
Home-made desserts are co-owner Alice Haulbrook’s specialty such as the coconut, German chocolate and lemon cake pictured here. Whole cakes are available for purchase providing orders are made one to two days in advance. “Alice loves to cook and bake and I love the customers,” Welden said, adding that all three sisters learned their culinary skills from their mother, whom the café is named after. “Our mother is 89 years old and just picked two bushels of beans,” Welden said with a laugh, adding that the sisters also got their work ethics from their mother. “We aren’t here to get rich. We just want to provide quality food and friendly service to our customers and make living.” The sisters invite the public to stop by and try the home-cooked food at Granny’s. Granny’s Old Fashion Café is located 5782 Gen. Carl W. Stiner Highway where John D’s bar used to be. For more information or to place an order call 423-377-5947. The business is open Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. (07/24/2014 - 6:00 AM) State of the County - Mayor William Baird & Deputy Mayor David G. Young 07/22/2014 <>
Services from the First Baptist Church of La Follette 07-27-14 <> 3rd Forum '14 - district 5 school board/commission & sheriff candidates 07/17/2014 Forums 1 and 2 are found further down this page
1st Forum '14 - districts 1 & 2 school board/commission candidates 06/26/2014
2nd Forum '14 school board/commission districts 3 & 4 and mayoral 07/10/2014
ESPN-SEC Network airs in August It`s
about 90 days to the TENNESSEE VOL kick off on the new ESPN Network.
If you are NOT using Dish Network you will not be watching. As of now
Dish is your only option in
2014 August 14 or 15 Jamboree A
August 22
August 29
Lynn Camp
H
September 5
Central *
H
September
12
September 18
October 3
October 10
Gibbs*
H
October 17
Open Date
- -
October 24
Karns*
A October 31 Powell*(SN) H
Join Tony Basilio
American Cable-Dish Network KPs Bar B Que Jeff Sweat Investment
Services Pop’s Wine & Liquor
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