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Today's News

  • Fly ash to hit rail, highways

    From STAFF REPORTS

    Ash-filled trains will soon be on the roll to Alabama, and TVA will soon begin test runs of trucking ash to area landfills.

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved the TVA’s plan to transfer coal ash from the Emory River to the Arrowhead Landfill in Perry County, Ala., despite some complaints the ash is being dumped in an area with

    an impoverished, minority population.

    Click here to read more...
  • Trial over slain grandmother begins

    By DAMON LAWRENCE

    dlawrence@roanecounty.com

    Something bad happened to Kathleen Taylor.

    Prosecutor Frank Harvey and defense attorney Bruce Poston agree on that much.

    However, the two men differ about the involvement of David William Cosgriff.

    Opening statements began in Cosgriff’s first-degree murder trial on Tuesday.

    Harvey told the jury that Cosgriff is responsible for Taylor’s death.

    Click here to read more...
  • Kingston dips into reserves to make budget

    By JENNIFER RAYMOND

    jraymond@roanecounty.com

    No employee raises and no property tax increase has some of the Kingston City Council feeling torn about their final budget.

    Although they tried to find ways to fund a pay raise, they were unable without taking more money out of their reserve fund or looking at raising taxes.

    “Because of the economy, we didn’t want to add a property tax increase,” Councilwoman Teresa Ferguson said.

    Click here to read more...
  • Constable Patton removed from office

    Roane County Constable Mark Patton has lost his office as a result of a judge's decision, according to District Attorney General Russell Johnson.

    Johnson said he received word Wednesday afternoon that Judge Russell Simmons Jr. has decided that testimony in last week's ouster trial was enough to warrant the embattled constable's removal from office.

    Click here to read more...
  • Mark Patton removed from office

    By DAMON LAWRENCE

    dlawrence@roanecounty.com

    For years people have been saying Mark Patton was unfit to hold the office of Roane County constable.

    On Wednesday, a judge agreed. In an eight-page ruling, Circuit Court Judge Russell Simmons has determined that Patton should be ousted from office.

    “I think justice has been served,” Roane County Sheriff Jack Stockton said Wednesday from the courthouse.

    Click here to read more...
  • Kingston explores banning guns in city parks

    By JENNIFER RAYMOND

    jraymond@roanecounty.com

    The right to bear arms, in public parks.

    Starting Sept. 1, permit holders will be allowed to carry their loaded guns into parks.

    The Tennessee General Assembly recently passed the law, and now municipalities will have the right to either accept or opt out of this law.

    The Kingston City Council discussed this option at Tuesday night's meeting.

    Councilwoman Teresa Ferguson brought the topic before council and is in favor of opting out of the law.

    Click here to read more...
  • Houston brothers say they can no longer afford monitoring

    By DAMON LAWRENCE

    dlawrence@roanecounty.com

    A judge let Rocky and Leon Houston out of jail on bond — and he’s apparently the only one who can send them back if conditions of the bond aren’t being followed.

    “The judge sets the conditions of release, so it’s always up to the judge what happens,” special prosecutor Kenneth Irvine said.

    One of the conditions of release is electronic monitoring. The Houstons are required to pay for the service.

    Click here to read more...
  • Midtown Drive-In closing in August

    By JENNIFER RAYMOND

    jraymond@roanecounty.com

    The days of catching a movie at the Midtown Drive-In are numbered.

    Owner Douglas Freeman has put the historic drive-in up for sale and plans to close down operations the first of August.

    Manager Charli Michaels said the drive-in just isn’t drawing in big crowds like it has in the past.

    “We’re just pulling in a couple hundred,” Michaels said. “We should be pulling in 600 or 700.”

    Click here to read more...
  • 278th on the move again

    STAFF REPORTS

    The Tennessee National Guard 278th Armored Calvary Regiment received mobilization orders on Monday that will go into effect later this year.

    Where they are going and when they will be leaving are still mysteries, however.

    The exact date and location of deployment have not yet been announced.

    This National Guard unit, the largest in Tennessee, is headquartered in Knoxville, and is composed of more than 3,000 soldiers.

    The regiment’s Troop C of the 1st Squadron is based in Rockwood.

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  • Price of justice is often costly

    By DAMON LAWRENCE

    dlawrence@roanecounty.com

    Counties must provide certain services for jail inmates.

    One of them is health care.

    That’s why David Cosgriff was released from jail in 2008.

    Covering his health care costs had become a financial burden on the county.

    Cosgriff is now back in jail after having been found guilty of second-degree murder.

    “The financial burden will fall on the county again,” Prosecutor Frank Harvey said.

    Click here to read more...

Copyright © 2013

The Roane County News is your source for local news, sports, events, and information in Roane County and Kingston, Tennessee, and the surrounding area.