Two people were injured Tuesday evening when their car plunged several feet off a steep embankment on the Cookeville Highway just a short distance south of Hurricane Bridge.
Trooper Dewaine Jennings of the Tennessee Highway Patrol says 24 year old Roberto Perez of Cookeville was driving a 1994 Chevy Camaro south on Highway 56 when he failed to properly negotiate a curve, left the road to the right, struck a utility pole guide wire, went off a steep embankment, and struck a tree.
Perez and a passenger, 48 year old Maria Mendez of Cookeville, were later taken by DeKalb EMS to DeKalb Community Hospital where they were treated and released. Perez said he was taking Mendez to work when the crash occurred. She is employed at Tenneco.
A witness claims that the car was traveling south when it went over the yellow line of the highway and then overcorrected before losing control.
After the accident, another passerby, 31 year old Juan Gaspar of Cookeville, who was driving a blue Mustang enroute to his job at Tenneco, stopped at the scene. Perez got in the car with Gaspar and they drove away, leaving Mendez behind. The two men claim they did not know each other.
Central dispatch was notified and officers were alerted to be on the lookout for the blue Mustang. A county deputy stopped Gaspar’s car at the Keystop Market on Cookeville Highway (formerly Robert’s Grocery). Perez claims his intent was not to flee the scene, but to get to the hospital.
Gaspar and Perez were returned to the site of the crash
EMS treated Perez and Mendez at the scene and then transported them to the hospital.
Perez was charged with failure to maintain the lane of travel, driving without a license, and violation of the financial responsibility law (no insurance)
Gaspar was charged with do drivers license and no insurance

34 year Steve F. Mabe, Jr of 387 Lee Braswell Road has been indicted by the DeKalb County Grand Jury on an attempted first degree murder charge in the shooting of 32 year old Donnie Stanley, Jr.
The shooting occurred at Stanley’s home on Toad Road on November 14th, 2007. Sheriff Patrick Ray says Stanley was shot once in the right side of his face and the bullet protruded into the neck. He has not disclosed a motive for the shooting.
The indictment states that “Mabe did unlawfully, intentionally, and with premeditation attempt to kill Stanley.”
Mabe is among more than 80 defendants indicted by the grand jury who will appear for arraignment in DeKalb County Criminal Court on Monday, April 14th at 9:00 a.m.
At least forty five people or more are named in sealed indictments. The names of those people cannot be disclosed until they are arrested and formally charged in those cases.
Defendants charged in other Grand Jury indictments this week are as follows:
Joshua Wayne Goff- driving while suspended (3rd offense)
Waylon R. Farless- driving on a revoked license (4th offense)
Waylon Ray Farless- speeding, reckless driving, evading arrest and reckless endangerment
Waylon Ray Farless- burglary and theft over $500
Billy Ray Smith- driving under the influence (3rd offense); driving while revoked; and violation of the implied consent law.
Warren Brandon Glasby- vehicular assault (2 counts), driving under the influence, violation of the implied consent law, possession of drug paraphernalia, violation of the seatbelt law, violation of the registration law, and violation of the financial responsibility law
Warren B. Glasby- burglary (2 counts) and theft (3 counts)
Billy R. Eaton and Teresa Tittle Hallback- sale and delivery of a schedule III and IV controlled substance
James H. Davis- introduction of contraband into the jail
Scotty Dale Farmer- possession of a schedule III controlled substance
Andy Joe Certain- simple possession of a schedule VI controlled substance
Mark Anthony Graham- simple possession of a schedule II controlled substance
Ricky Harlin Neal- driving on a revoked license (2nd offense) and violation of the habitual motor vehicle offender order
Derek Charles Riggs- domestic assault
Danny Ray Murphy- reckless endangerment, driving under the influence (1st offense), child endangerment, violation of the implied consent law, and no drivers license
James Hesson- violation of the sex offender registry
Jeffery L. Murphy- driving under the influence and violation of the implied consent law
Amy D. Curtis- driving on a revoked license and possession of drug paraphernalia
Jane Elizabeth Hall- driving under the influence
Sharon R. Barnwell- driving under the influence (1st offense)
Rodney H. Gora II- vehicular assault, driving under the influence, violation of the seatbelt law, violation of the registration law, and violation of the financial responsibility law
Tina Denise Dorton- driving under the influence, driving on a revoked license (2nd offense), and violation of the implied consent law
Tina Dorton- sale and delivery of a schedule II controlled substance
Stephanie Stone- driving under the influence (2nd offense), violation of the implied consent law, speeding, and reckless driving
Bryan W. Cole- theft over $1,000
Scotty W. Neisz- theft over $1,000
Homer A. Petty- driving on a revoked license
Travis C. Tramel- failure to appear
William Ray Cantrell and Thomas Anthony Pavone- attempted second degree murder and aggravated assault over $500.
Kelly Ann Gibbs- theft under $500 and fraudulent use of a card under $500 (10 counts) and fraudulent use of a card over $1,000
Crystal Turner and Kelly A. Gibbs- aggravated burglary, theft over $500, forgery (4 counts), and passing a forged instrument (4 counts)
Elizabeth Ann Chalfant- theft under $500 and forgery (7 counts)
Ricky Allen Ashford II- theft over $500 and forgery (5 counts)
Tabatha Murphy and Gwynn Prater- possession of a schedule II and IV controlled substance for resale and delivery and possession of drug paraphernalia
David Ray Johnson- possession of a schedule VI controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia
Joseph S. Barnes- attempting to possess a schedule II controlled substance for resale
Mark R. Robinson- possession of a schedule IV controlled substance for resale and delivery and possession of drug paraphernalia
Larry Keaton- sale and delivery of a schedule II controlled substance
Jeffery S. Ponder- possession of a schedule III and IV controlled substance for resale and possession of drug paraphernalia
Ernest P. Barnwell- aggravated burglary and theft over $1,000
Jorge Luis Ramirez- aggravated statutory rape
Julie Diane Ray- accessory after the fact
Gregg Hallback- possession of a schedule II controlled substance for resale and delivery and possession of drug paraphernalia
Laura Lee Nichols- assault
Shelly L. Burton- driving under the influence, driving on a revoked license (2nd offense), violation of the open container law, and violation of the registration law
Desiree Ferrell- driving under the influence
The Grand Jury returned a No True Bill in a theft case against Michael J. Foster

The latest population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau show that DeKalb County has grown at a rate of 5.8% since the year 2000.
Henry Bowman, an analyst of the Upper Cumberland Development District, told WJLE Monday that the 2007 estimates put the DeKalb County population at 18,436. “That compares to 17, 423 in the official 2000 Census which represents a growth of 1,013 people or 5.8%. That’s a little below average for the Upper Cumberland Region, but the region’s population is affected a lot by Cumberland and Putnam County, which have shown very rapid growth. I would say that DeKalb County’s population estimate is a little understated. I suspect the Census will turn up more people than that. Of course, you have a situation in DeKalb County and Cumberland County too, where you have a lot of people who don’t live there year round. They may be residents part of the year and not other parts of the year so that makes it a little bit trickier to estimate. Cumberland County is primarily being driven by the retirement communities as far as we can tell, such as Fairfield Glade, Tansi, and places like that. Those populations have been increasing very rapidly and so is the population of the county (Cumberland) as a whole. As a matter of fact, I would guess that it’s probably a little more than what they’ve estimated here.”
Bowman added that these are just estimates, not actual numbers, and are compiled by the Census Bureau based on various sources. “They look at several factors. First of all they control it from the top down. They start with the national population and then they estimate the state population, then they estimate the county population. They look at things like Medicare recipients to count the 65 plus population. Then they look at income tax returns to check the number of dependants claimed on those returns to estimate the zero to 64 population. They also look at things like births and deaths, which they have at the county level. Then they crunch all that through a model to come up with the estimates.”
Putnam County has the largest population of any county in the Upper Cumberland Region. The 2007 estimate of Putnam’s population is 69,916, up by 7,601, or 12.2 percent, from the total of 62,315 recorded in 2000.
Cumberland County’s total estimated population in 2007 was 53,040, up by 13.3 percent from 46,802 in 2000.
2007 population estimates for the other Upper Cumberland counties are as follows: Warren, 39,690; White, 24,895; Macon, 21,561; Overton, 20,975; Smith, 18,845; Fentress, 17,420; Cannon, 13,432; Jackson, 10,791; Clay, 7,870; Van Buren, 5,437; Pickett, 4,762.
The region’s total population as of 2007 is estimated at 327,070, up by 22,072, or 7.2 percent, since 2000.
The next official Census will be conducted in the year 2010.

DeKalb County Criminal Court Judge Leon Burns, Jr. handed down a modified sentence in the statutory rape case against Gary Carter Monday.
Carter will report to the county jail Tuesday to begin serving time on one count of statutory rape involving a female, who was 17 years old and only a few months shy of turning 18 when the incident allegedly occurred.
Under terms of the sentence, Carter will serve a straight 30 days beginning April 1st. He will then serve on weekends from May through December. Beginning January 1st, 2009, Carter will serve another 30 days straight. His case will then be placed back on the docket for further review.
Judge Burns, in September 2006, sentenced Carter to two years to be served in split confinement with nine months incarceration followed by four years probation, after Carter entered a guilty plea in the case.
Carter later appealed the sentence seeking full probation.
In a February decision, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals upheld the trial court’s denial of judicial diversion and full probation but ruled that “the trial court erred in the imposition of nine months of incarceration.”
According to the higher court, “The period of time ordered to be served in split confinement cannot exceed the defendant’s release eligibility date. The release eligibility date for a Range I standard offender receiving a two year sentence is 7.2 months less certain sentence credits. The case was remanded back to the trial court for re-sentencing.
Meanwhile, in other court news Monday, 40 year old Alton David Estes entered a no contest plea to burglary and three counts of theft under $500.
He received a three year sentence to serve 90 days in the burglary case and 11 months and 29 days to serve 90 days in each of the theft cases, all to run concurrently. Estes must pay restitution of $2,150 to one of the victims in the case and restitution to another victim in an amount to be determined later. He must also perform 100 hours of community service work. Estes will report to jail April 30th. He was given credit for 52 days of jail time already served.
32 year old Russell Allen Blackwell pleaded guilty to two counts of sale of a schedule II controlled substance. He received a four year sentence to serve six months in each case and then he will be on Department of Corrections Probation supervised by Community Corrections. The cases are to run concurrently with each other but consecutive to a violation of probation against him in another case.
Blackwell must make restitution of $210, pay a $2,000 fine, and perform 100 hours of community service work. He was given credit for 28 days of jail time served.
33 year old Jason Douglas Campbell pleaded guilty to sale of a schedule III controlled substance and received a three year sentence, suspended to time served and probation. He must pay a $2,000 fine and make restitution of $50. Campbell must also perform 100 hours of community service work. He was given credit for 31 days of jail time served.
26 year old Jason Wayne Judd pleaded guilty to theft under $500 and received a sentence of 11 months and 29 days, all suspended to supervised probation. The sentence is to run concurrent with a White County case against him. Judd must make restitution of $828.30 and perform 50 hours of community service work.
60 year old Harold Gene Blackwell pleaded guilty to two counts of sale of a schedule II controlled substance and received a four year sentence to serve four months in each case and then be on TDOC probation. Fines were waived but he must make $210 restitution. The cases are to run concurrently with each other but consecutive to any General Sessions court case against him. Blackwell is to report to jail April 4th.

A joint investigation into a counterfeiting operation by the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department and the Smithville Police Department has led to the arrest of three people.
Sheriff Patrick Ray says 23 year old Megan Ann Lann and her boyfriend, 27 year old Samer Walid Abdalla both of Pine Grove Road, Smithville are each charged with the forging or counterfeiting of instruments or currency.
They are accused of producing at least $800 to $1,000 in counterfeit $10 and $20 bills on a desk and laptop computer and printer in their home and then passing some of those bills at local and area businesses.
Detective Sergeant Jerry Hutchins’ Jr. says the Smithville Police Department has also charged Lann and 22 year old Jason Ryan Chapman of 212 North Mill Street, Dowelltown with passing counterfeit bank bills as currency.
Chapman, an employee of Walmart in Smithville, could be seen on a videotape from the store’s surveillance camera , along with Lann, making purchases at Walmart with some of the counterfeit money.
Bond for Abdalla is set at $50,000; $15,000 for Lann; and $20,000 for Chapman.
All are scheduled to appear in General Sessions Court on the charges April 24th.
Sheriff Ray and Detective Sergeant Hutchins say counterfeit bills have shown up at several businesses in recent days, including Walmart, McDonald’s, Rite Aid Pharmacy, Mapco Express, Jewel’s Market, Subway, and the BP station on West Broad Street. Hutchins says the bills have no water marks or bar codes and some were not cut squarely. The bills also have some of the same serial numbers.
There have also been reports of counterfeit bills showing up in Smith and Putnam counties which may be related to this case.
Sheriff Ray says local authorities got a break in the investigation last week when someone phoned in a tip identifying Lann as a possible suspect. “We had a tip from somebody who called in and said Lann was the one who was manufacturing the money. I contacted Jerry (Hutchins) and told him and we went and picked up Chapman (a friend of Lann) and brought him up to the jail for questioning. After questioning Chapman, we went out to Pine Grove Road and picked up Megan and her boyfriend, Abdalla. We confiscated a lap top computer, a desk computer and printer. We also found in the house, pieces of paper that was cut out about the size of a bill. You could actually see on the bottom where they didn’t cut it just exactly straight. They cut off some of the bill. We came back, questioned them and all three of them gave statements.”
According to Sheriff Ray, both Abdalla and Lann were involved in manufacturing the counterfeit bills. “He was the one who did most of the printing. He took a 20 bill, stuck it in a printer and used a certain kind of paper, found out how easy it was and then they (Abdalla and Lann) passed some of it, just to see if they could. We didn’t find any (phony bills) on them but in their statements, they told us they made somewhere between $800 and $1,000 worth of the fake money. They had printed quite a few $20 bills and some $10’s.”
Detective Sergeant Hutchins says a videotape from a Walmart security camera also assisted in solving the case. “On March 21st a patrol officer responded to Walmart in reference to counterfeit money showing up. The case was assigned to me and I received the videotape from the manager of Walmart that shows an employee, Jason Chapman basically passing $40 in counterfeit currency to purchase items there. It also shows Mr. Chapman, Ms. Lann, and Mr. Abdalla entering the store together. It showed Ms. Lann purchasing items and paying for them with approximately $240 dollars in counterfeit currency. I developed a lead in the city and he (Sheriff) had some tips in the county he had come up with and we put our information together and was able to resolve the case.”
Chapman is charged with two counts of passing counterfeit bank bills as currency. In one case on March 21st, he allegedly made purchases at Walmart using fake bills. In the second case on March 25th, Chapman allegedly used phony money to purchase some items from a private citizen.
Lann allegedly purchased a DVD player from the Walmart store in Smithville using counterfeit bills. Abdalla later took the DVD player to the Walmart store in McMinnville and exchanged it for cash. McMinnville Police are investigating that case and may bring charges there against Abdalla.
Both Sheriff Ray and Detective Sergeant Hutchins say about $400 in counterfeit bills have been confiscated but a lot more could be out there “floating around.”
According to Sheriff Ray, some people are innocently carrying some of the counterfeits “I have had some calls from people who have either gone to a business to let them check their money because they heard there was a bunch of (fake) 20’s going around or some innocent people have tried to pass $20 bills at stores for whatever they got there and found the bills to be fake when they were checked.”
Sheriff Ray adds that one local person, who recently dined out at Cheddars in Cookeville, made payment for his meal and discovered that some of the change he got back was apparently counterfeit. “When he went to buy something at a local store, they checked the bill and it was fake. He then let them check all the bills. He later called and told me he had got some of this fake money at Cheddars. He went to eat there, he gave them money, they gave him back change, and it was fake.”
Business owners and operators are urged to check all $20 and $10 bills and report any counterfeit bills to the Sheriff’s Department or Smithville Police Department.
More arrests and charges may be forthcoming.

Three people were arrested Saturday by the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department as the result of recent theft investigations.
24 year old Warren Brandon Glasby of Poss Road was charged with criminal trespassing, vandalism and theft of property over $500.
Sheriff Patrick Ray says Glasby went to a farm on Pumpkin Hollow Road, Dowelltown on Thursday, March 20th and entered the property without the owners consent. While there Glasby allegedly stole a 1985 Mercury Marquis and also hit an outbuilding with his vehicle causing damage to the structure.
Meanwhile, Glasby and two other people, 31 year old Ernest Edward Hill of Chumney Hollow Road, Watertown and 29 year old Amy Renee Ford of Holmes Gap Road, Brush Creek have been arrested for stealing items at a residence on Adamson Branch in Road Liberty on Wednesday, March 19th.
County detectives claim that Glasby, Hill, and Ford went to a residence on Adamson Branch Road and took two long guns, a chainsaw, an air compressor, set of cutting torches, generator, welder, and a cab off of a pickup truck.
Ford was charged in that case with theft of property over $1,000 and simple possession of marijuana. Sheriff Ray says deputies found a marijuana cigarette when Ford was arrested and she claims it belonged to her. Ford’s total bond was set at $7,500 and her court date is April 24th.
Hill was charged with aggravated burglary and theft of property over $1,000. Hill’s total bond was set at $75,000 and his court date is April 24th.
Glasby was charged in this case with aggravated burglary and theft of property over $1,000. Glasby’s total bond was set at $120,000 and his court date is set for April 24th.
Also on Saturday, deputies arrested 25 year old Charles Michael Blanchfield of Nashville Highway, Dowelltown.
Sheriff Ray says an officer stopped Blanchfield knowing he had a revoked driver’s license. While attempting to stop him, the officer noticed that Blanchfield swapped positions with a passenger of his vehicle. After the deputy got the vehicle stopped, Blanchfield admitted to being the driver. Upon searching Blanchfield, officers found a small amount of marijuana in Blanchfield’s billfold. He was charged with a first offense of driving on a revoked driver’s license and simple possession of marijuana. Blanchfield’s total bond was set at $3,000 and his court date is April 17th.
56 year old Charles Thomas Reeder of High Street, Alexandria was arrested Saturday for simple possession of a schedule IV drug (Valium).
Sheriff Ray says deputies found Reeder and a female sitting in a vehicle on Circle Drive in Dowelltown. After consent to search was obtained, the officers found 20 pills in an unmarked prescription bottle believed to be Valium. Reeder was arrested and his bond was set at $3,500. Reeder’s court date April 17th.