Nearly 100 competitors representing grades 4 through 12 participated in the 58th annual Cumberland Plateau Regional Science and Engineering Fair this spring at the Millard Oakley STEM Center at Tennessee Tech University. The students were from more than 10 counties.
“I was very pleased with the level of exhibits on display during this year’s fair,” said Peter Li, director of the fair and professor of geography at TTU. “It is always exciting to see the discoveries that our students make in their research. I congratulate all of this year’s participants, award winners, their families and teachers.”
DeKalb County High School student Peter Antoniak won the Marvin Tidwell Award for the best of the junior division, which incorporates grades seven through nine.
PHOTO CAPTION:
Standing with regional fair director Peter Li is Peter Antoniak.

Three local residents of DeKalb County competed in the USSSA Memorial Day NIT Tournament in Franklin, Tennessee over Memorial Day Weekend.
A.J. Mooneyham, Cason Oakley and Sam McMillen are part of the Mid-South Mayhem Travel Baseball team that went a perfect 5 and 0 in the tournament and captured the 1st place trophy.
Other players on the team include: Logan Fields and Bailey Kemp from Smith County, Luke Turner, Bronson Bell, Jackson Vance, Drew Trice and Matthew Dillon all from Wilson County, Ethan Roberts from White County and Weston Burris from Rutherford County. Caleb Dillon is the batboy.
The Mid-South Mayhem is coached by Paul Fields from Smith County and Chad Vance and Kenny Dillon, both from Wilson County. This was the Mayhem’s 2nd Title in 3 tournaments. They also won the USSSA NIT in Columbia, Tennessee the 2nd week of May.

Recently several 4-H members competed at the Regional Wildlife Judging competition.
For the last two months, these 4-Hers learned to identify 45 wildlife species and to determine appropriate wildlife management practices.
The coaches for the team were TWRA officer Mike Beaty, Army Corp. of Engineers Ranger Terry Martin, and Extension Agent April Martin.
The Junior High Team members included: Caitlyn Lawrence, Wyatt Martin, Eli Oliver, Casey Taylor, Morgan Vickers, and Casey Vickers. The team placed 7th in the region and Caitlyn Lawrence was 12th high individual.
The Senior High Team members included: Brooke Reffue, Crystal Vickers, Justin Bass, and Lydia Trail. The team placed 7th in the region.
4-H judging teams is just one of the many activities offered through 4-H to teach important life skills. The University of Tennessee Extension offers all its programs to everyone in the county.
(This is for the photo caption)
4-H Wildlife Judging Team Members: front row (l-r): Crystal Vickers, Casey Vickers, Casey Taylor, Eli Oliver, and Wyatt Martin. Back row: Lydia Trail, Justin Bass, Brooke Reffue, and Caitlyn Lawrence. (photo by April Martin)

Four hundred fifty one people have voted early to date in the Smithville Municipal Election with four days to go.
Here’s how the voting breaks down each day:
Wednesday, May 30, 48 voters
Thursday, May 31, 55 voters
Friday, June 1, 45 voters
Saturday, June 2, 24 voters
Monday, June 4, 38 voters
Tuesday, June 5, 40 voters
Wednesday, June 6, 27 voters
Thursday, June 7, 58 voters
Friday, June 8, 23 voters
Saturday, June 9, 47 voters
Monday, June 11, 22 voters
Tuesday, June 12, 24 voters
Voting continues through Thursday, June 14 at the DeKalb County Election Commission Office on the first floor of the courthouse.
Hours for early voting are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m,
Thursday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday from 9 a.m. until Noon.
A mayor and two aldermen will be elected on Tuesday, June 19, each to serve a two year term, beginning July 1. The candidates for mayor are Taft Hendrixson and Jimmy Poss. Candidates for alderman are Scott Davis, Jason Judd Murphy, Tim Stribling, and Steve White.
The ballot will also include a referendum on liquor by the drink in city restaurants. Voters will have the opportunity to vote either “yes” or “no” on whether to “authorize the sale of alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises in the City of Smithville.”
Election day voting, June 19 will be from 8:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. in the basement courtroom of the courthouse.

A fire Tuesday damaged a large barn and destroyed more than 200 rolls of wheat hay belonging to Frank Colwell on Evins Mill Road.
County Fire Chief Donny Green told WJLE that Colwell was feeding cattle on his farm when he saw a puff of smoke coming from the barn, a 200 x 75 foot structure, which once served as a dairy barn, now used for hay storage.
Colwell phoned Chief Green to report what he saw. Green then called for firefighters to get enroute. Central dispatch received the call at 10:33 a.m.
Chief Green said the fire, which is believed to have started from spontaneous combustion within the rolls of hay, was difficult to put out. Firefighters spent almost twelve hours on the scene, before leaving around ten p.m. Tuesday night.
According to Chief Green, the barn held more than 300 rolls of wheat hay and two thirds of it was destroyed. But Mr. Colwell was able to save 108 rolls, using a forklift to remove them from the structure. The fire also destroyed about a fourth of the barn.
Chief Green said about 38,000 gallons of water was used to extinguish the fire, most of it coming from an irrigation pond at Pirtle’s Nursery.
Members of the Short Mountain Highway, Midway, Main Station, Keltonburg, and Blue Springs Stations of the DeKalb County Volunteer Fire Department responded along with manpower from other county stations. Members of the City of Smithville and North Warren County Fire Departments came to the scene with fire trucks and manpower to render mutual aid assistance, along with deputies of the Sheriff’s Department and DeKalb EMS. No one was injured.
Chief Green said he wishes to thank the Smithville Volunteer Fire Department and the North Warren Fire Department for their support.

A suspected drug dealer, arrested by Smithville Police in a drug bust in January, was given three years probation in DeKalb County Criminal Court on Friday.
36 year old Teresa Thomas appeared before Judge Leon Burns, Jr. and pleaded guilty to possession of a schedule III and VI controlled substance with intent to sell. She received a three year sentence in one case and two years in the other, all suspended to supervised probation. The sentences are to run concurrently for one three year term. Thomas was fined $2,000 and was given jail credit from January 27 to May 25, 2012.
Thomas was arrested on Friday, January 27 in the housing projects on Morgan Drive.
Acting on numerous citizen complaints about suspected drug activity from this residence, Chief Randy Caplinger said Smithville Police conducted an undercover drug investigation, using an informant, who went to Thomas’ home on Tuesday, January 24 and made the drug buy.
A search warrant was prepared and served on Thomas at the residence on Friday, January 27. According to Chief Caplinger and Detectives Matt Holmes and Brandon Donnell, police found in Thomas’ purse nineteen baggies of marijuana each weighing one gram; ten baggies of pot each weighing two grams; and one baggie containing five grams of marijuana. Also found in her purse were twenty five and a half hydrocodone pills and two and a half suboxone pills. A further search of the home turned up another thirty grams of marijuana, cut straws with residue, a pipe, multiple prescription pill bottles without their labels, two pill crushers, two marijuana cigarettes, scales, two boxes of sandwich bags apparently intended for packaging drugs, and a notebook containing the names of people who allegedly owed Thomas money for drug transactions. An undisclosed amount of cash was also seized. Because children were present in the residence at the time of Thomas’ arrest, the Department of Children Services was notified.
Thomas was taken into custody and charged in the case. Police said during the interview, Thomas allegedly admitted to police that the drugs and paraphernalia found in the home belonged to her.
In addition to Chief Caplinger and Detectives Holmes and Donnell, Captain Steven Leffew, K-9 Officer James Cornelius and Officer Matt Farmer assisted in the case.
Meanwhile, two other people were sentenced in court Friday, as the result of drug investigations by the Smithville Police Department, 24 year old Ben Pascal and 41 year old Timothy Lawson.
Pascal pleaded guilty to sale of a schedule II controlled substance and received a three year sentence. He was fined $2,000 and ordered to make $50 restitution to the Smithville Police Department. Pascal must undergo an alcohol and drug assessment. The sentence is to run concurrently with a violation of probation against him. He was given jail credit of 213 days.
Pascal was one five people named in grand jury sealed indictments in December as the result of an undercover drug investigation by the Smithville Police Department. Chief Randy Caplinger said the investigations were conducted by Detectives Matt Holmes and Brandon Donnell with an informant making the drug buys. A TBI agent worked with the detectives in one case. Pascal was charged with sale and delivery of a schedule II controlled substance. He was indicted with a co-defendant for allegedly selling and delivering dilaudid, a schedule II controlled substance on August 25.
Lawson pleaded guilty to two counts of sale of a schedule II controlled substance and received five years in each case to be served consecutively for a total of ten years. Lawson must serve at least thirty percent of the sentence before his release eligibility date. He was fined $2,000 and was given jail credit from November 28, 2011 to May 25, 2012. Lawson’s probation was revoked for an earlier charge of sale of a schedule III controlled substance and he must serve the balance of his original three year sentence in that case. Again, the revocation is to run concurrently with the sentence he received on Friday.
Lawson was originally charged with three counts of sale and delivery of a schedule II controlled substance in a drug free school zone. The indictments allege that Lawson sold and delivered morphine on July 27, August 4, and August 23. The alleged drug buys took place at the City Walk Apartments, located near Smithville Elementary School.
Detectives Donnell and Holmes went to City Walk Apartment Monday, November 28 to serve the indictments on Lawson but no one came to the door, even though they saw who they thought was Lawson inside. After forcibly entering, the detectives found Lawson who was hiding in the apartment.
Probation for 30 year old Mary Tanner Curtis was revoked Friday.. She must serve the balance of her original six year sentence for attempting to initiate a process to manufacture methamphetamine. She was given jail credit from February 2, 2010 to May 22, 2010 and from April 2, 2012 to May 25, 2012. Curtis may be furloughed to the “DC4” drug court but she must successfully complete the program. If so she may be placed back on probation.
Probation for 35 year old Andy Certain was revoked and he must serve the balance of his original sentence of two years for possession of a weapon by a convicted felon. He was given jail credit from December 4, 2011 to February 3, 2012 and from May 10, 2012 to May 25, 2012. Certain may be furloughed to an approved long term inpatient rehabilitation program.
Probation was partially revoked for 21 year old Ray Underwood. His original sentence was two years for promotion of the manufacturing of methamphetamine. He must serve 180 days in the county jail and then be released to probation again. He was given jail credit from March 1, 2012 to May 25, 2012. His probation will be extended by one year or until costs and fines are paid in full.

Sheriff Patrick Ray has been pleased with the School Resource Officer program at DeKalb County High School and would like to see another one in the school system.
Sheriff Ray said grant funds have been sought in recent years for another position without success. “We tried to apply for another SRO two or three years ago, but we did not get that position. We would like to see another SRO in our school system. We would like to see one stationed at DeKalb West School who could also help with schools in Smithville We will probably try again for a grant,” he said.
Meanwhile, Kenneth Whitehead, School Resource Officer at DCHS, has filed his year end report with Sheriff Ray.
In his letter to Sheriff Ray, Officer Whitehead reported ” As you can see, it has been a very busy year. I have made many arrests and sometimes we tend to think the worst of our school system because of those arrests. Regardless of the numbers, I feel that the school resource officer program is a great asset to the DeKalb County school system. We should not look at only the arrests and evaluate the success or failure of the program, but the overall results both good and bad. I have met with many students and dealt with all kinds of problems throughout this school year. I feel that due to this contact that I have helped these students deal with some problems that the school system just does not have time to deal with. I also feel that just my presence at the school does wonders for the student body. I hope that the school system and the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department continues to see the importance of the school resource officer program and what benefits it can obtain from having it. I have enclosed a copy of the 2011-12 school year SRO report. I hope that my reports will help show that there is a need for a second school resource officer in our school system,” wrote Whitehead.
The report is as follows:
42 misdemeanor arrests at school (juvenile petitions)
9 drug arrests
27 assists with patrols or with detective divisions of the sheriff’s department or police department
776 advisory sessions with students (six of those were with students families and three with law enforcement officers)
236 advisory sessions with parents.
382 advisory sessions with a teacher or staff member
37 classroom lectures
32 special school events attended
30 court appearances
28 motorist assists in parking lot of school
8 club meetings attended
46 cigarette citations
9 fights
Total value of reported stolen property $2,627, of which $2,415 in property was recovered.
Some alcohol, marijuana, pills, and bb gun seized from the school.
15 unruly juveniles dealt with