The Sheriff’s Department has arrested a 46 year old man for allegedly threatening a woman and child with a knife.
Christopher Neal Patterson of Big Hickory Court, Smithville is charged with aggravated assault. His bond is $5,000 and he will make a court appearance on January 28.
Sheriff Patrick Ray said that on Thursday, December 17 a deputy was dispatched to a residence on Big Hickory Court due to a domestic assault. Upon arrival the officer questioned a woman who said that Patterson had put a knife to her throat and said he would kill her and their youngest son. Patterson was placed under arrest.
Meanwhile 26 year old Nicholas Paul Benedict of South Judkins Lane, Smithville is charged with aggravated assault. He was also issued citations for simple possession of schedule II & III drugs. His bond is $5,000 and he will make a court appearance on January 7. Sheriff Ray said that on Friday, December 18 Benedict allegedly assaulted his girlfriend by hitting her in the abdomen area with a broom handle. He also allegedly grabbed and shoved her into a wall. The woman had physical marks from the assault. Benedict was placed under arrest. Upon a search of his person, Benedict was found to have in his possession a small green container that held one-three quarter peach colored pill believed to be suboxone and one and a quarter white pill thought to be hydrocodone.
45 year old Keith Alan Crum of Wolf Creek Road, Silver Point is charged with domestic assault. His bond is $2,000 and he will be in court February 25. Sheriff Ray said that on October 25 a deputy was dispatched to a residence on Wolf Creek Road due to a domestic incident between Crum and a woman. Upon arrival the officer learned that Crum had left the area. The victim said Crum had grabbed her by the throat and pushed her into a wall causing scratches and slight bleeding to her neck. The woman said she was afraid that Crum would return home and cause her further bodily harm. Crum was arrested on December 16.
68 year old Lamar Freeman Jackson, Jr. of Farewell Road, Dowelltown is charged with driving under the influence. He was further issued citations for no insurance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and due care. His bond is $1,500 and he will make a court appearance on January 21. Sheriff Ray said that on Wednesday, December 16 a deputy responded to a wreck on Nashville Highway. Upon arrival the officer spoke with the driver, Jackson who was unsteady on his feet. Jackson’s speech was slurred and he was unaware of his surroundings. Jackson had run his 1995 Mercury Grand Marquis off an embankment. Jackson told the officer that he had taken prescription medication and smoked marijuana. The officer found two pipes containing a green leafy substance believed to be marijuana in the car. Jackson could not provide proof of insurance. He submitted to and performed poorly on field sobriety tasks and also consented to a blood test. Jackson was arrested and brought to the jail for booking.
26 year old Matthew Tyler Hale of Walker Drive, Smithville is charged with violating an order of protection. Sheriff Ray said that Hale is the respondent on an order of protection that was served on the morning of December 15 and violated the order that day by contacting the petitioner multiple times by cell phone from approximately 10:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. His bond is $2,500 and he will be in court January 7.

Alexandria has a new Chief of Police.
Chris Russell, who has been serving as interim chief for the past month, was officially named chief during Tuesday night’s regular monthly meeting of the Alexandria Mayor and Board of Aldermen. He was sworn in by City Attorney Vester Parsley.
Russell told WJLE after the meeting that he looks forward to continue serving the people of Alexandria in this new role. “I’ve been with the Alexandria Police Department for a little over nine years now. I’ve been in law enforcement for going on seventeen years. Since I’ve been here I started as a patrolman and got promoted to sergeant and have been in that position for the last eight years,” said Chief Russell.
“As a department we’re going to continue to work on the drug problem in the community. I think that (drugs) leads to other crimes as far as burglaries, assaults and things like that so this is going to be our main focus,” he said.
In addition to Chief Russell, the Alexandria Police Department is made up of officers Dillon Hulse and Travis Hawkins. ” Dillon Hulse has been with us for about three months now. Our newest officer is Travis Hawkins. He just started within the last month. Both men have completed training at the state law enforcement academy,” Chief Russell continued.
“I just look forward to continue serving the community. If anybody has any concerns, feel free to come to me and address them and we’ll see what we can do for you,” he concluded.
The aldermen officially hired Hawkins as an officer during Tuesday night’s meeting. Both Hulse and Hawkins are from Wilson County.
Meanwhile, the aldermen voted to appoint Randy Payne as alderman to fill a position left vacant by Pat Jackson who has resigned. Payne was sworn into office by City Attorney Vester Parsley.

Authentically American! Omega Apparel continues it 22-year long history of making apparel in the US with the opening of a new design and production facility in Nashville. Omega Apparel now occupies two Tennessee based facilities. A 100,000 square foot facility in Smithville and the new 20,000 square foot facility in Nashville. The grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony will be held at 5225 Harding Place, Nashville, on Tuesday, January 12th at 10:45am. Mayor Barry will speak and participate in the ribbon cutting ceremony.
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“The opening of Omega’s Nashville facility is a game changer for our regional fashion brands in Nashville” continued Van Tucker, CEO of the Nashville Fashion Alliance (NFA). “The proximity of the creative and manufacturing processes in the apparel industry is a critical component for emerging fashion brands. At every stage of development, the Omega Apparel Team have embraced our regional brands to help them find quality, affordable American manufacturing and conquer one of our key challenges as an industry.”
“The heart of our mission at Omega is creating jobs and building a great place to work. The opening of our new facility in Nashville will enable our goal of adding 1000+ jobs over the next 5-years. Omega Apparel is Authentically American and we will be a catalyst in rebuilding the US Apparel industry” proclaimed Dean Wegner, President and CEO.
Company Overview: Omega Apparel Incorporated is military veteran owned and the #1 supplier of dress trousers, slacks, and skirts for the US Military. Omega Apparel was founded in 1994 and now includes 4 Divisions: Military, Commercial, Omega Brand, and Private Label. Omega has a long history of always delivering on time and with the highest level of quality. Omega operates two Tennessee based production and design facilities in Nashville and Smithville. Omega is a principles and values based organization centered on 5 Foundations of Ownership, Customer, Quality, Efficiency, and Teamwork. Omega Apparel is both committed and proud to be 100% Made in the USA. To learn more visit http://omegaapparelinc.com/.

A DeKalb County man, who tried to flee from Florida authorities after allegedly breaking into a pharmacy, was arrested last month after crashing his vehicle during a pursuit.
37 year old Jason Cripps, at last report, was being held in the Indian River County Jail in Florida on $61,000 bond charged with felony burglary of a structure, possession of burglary tools, criminal mischief and resisting arrest without violence.
Early Saturday morning, November 28 the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office received a call from the CVS Pharmacy security team that the store located at 53rd Street and US Highway 1 was being broken into. The CVS security team advised that a white van with a ladder rack was seen fleeing from the location. Deputy Christian Mathisen observed the vehicle northbound on US Highway 1 and attempted to stop it. The white van fled from him and eventually crashed into a wooded area, where the driver, Jason Cripps was apprehended.

An Alexandria man is seeking donations and volunteers to develop a community garden park on property owned by the Town of Alexandria.
Ricky Harris has already received permission from the Alexandria Mayor and Aldermen to proceed with the project. “I would like to do a revitalization of the old park behind the Osborne grocery store. Its roughly right at four acres. It’s actually been untouched for a little over 20 years. It’s just an overgrowth field,” Harris told WJLE.
At first Harris thought about doing something on a smaller scale as a way of giving back to his community but later decided on a garden park because it would serve a greater number of people. “I serve on the Board for my church the First Baptist Church of Alexandria for Community Projects. What I was originally thinking was to reach out to four or five families and maybe try to do some yard work and that sort of thing. But it occurred to me that we had a bigger project at hand that would affect the whole community,” he said.
Although work has begun to clear the property from brush and overgrowth, Harris said more help is needed. ” The first phase is to get the property clear. I’ve actually already went in and done some clearing. We’ve cleared the lower bottom part of it now and opened it up. Right now I’m primarily doing it with volunteers so I’m looking for volunteers to help me. Saturday, January 2 is the actual kick-off date. That’s the date we want volunteers to come out and start helping with chainsaws and clearing some more of the brush back. I figured January 2 would be a good day starting the new year,” Harris continued.
Once the land is cleared, Harris hopes to develop the park for all ages to enjoy. ” I want to open up the park itself for the community. The overall goal is to put in picnic tables and a walking trail with a bridge over a brook that’s already there. There is a pad for basketball goals. But I would eventually like to have a place for the kids to come and be a part of a garden that we want to put in. A raised bed garden. There’s actually a push that has been going on in Tennessee if you watch PBS. It’s called Pick Green Tennessee. There’s been projects throughout the whole state. I know one that has taken place in Chattanooga where they took some land and opened it up. They went in and re-did it putting in a garden which got kids off the street and gave them something hands on to do to help them stay out of trouble so to speak but it also gave them a place to go and reunite with others and talk about their issues. They can reap what they sow as well and help feed their families,” said Harris.
Anyone who would like to volunteer or give a donation to the effort is welcome to do so. “We’re actually going to reach out to local businesses and also to the public. If anybody would like to make a monetary donation or help by donating materials they can talk to mayor Bennett Armstrong. Overall, probably $4,500 is what we need to cover it. We plan to do it in phases but we would like to have it done before Easter to do a community Easter Egg Hunt. If anyone wants to help they can contact me personally at 615- 306-9033,” Harris concluded.