FROM THE RADIO NEWS DEPARTMENT

This Is The Final Week To Help Our Region Win A Walmart “Golden Spark” Which Will Provide A 50-Thousand Dollar Donation To Help Feed Children In Northeast Tennessee. The Promotion Is A Joint Effort Between Second Harvest Food Bank Of Northeast Tennessee And Walmart. Anyone Can Vote In The Fighting Hunger Together Promotion By Logging Onto To: Walmart Dot Com/Hunger Or Facebook Dot Com/Walmart And Register To Help Out. You Can Enter Every Day Between Now And October 14th. The More Entries, The More Chances Our Area Has To Win The Donation For The Food Bank. Second Harvest Food Bank Of Northeast Tennessee Serves Eight Counties In Upper East Tennessee.

A Science Hill Student Accused Of Bringing A Loaded Gun To School Will Not Spend Any Time Behind Bars. 18 Year Old Benjamin Neis-Eldridge, Who Was Charged With Carrying A Prohibited Weapon Onto School Property And Simple Possession Of Marijuana, Pleaded Guilty To The Charges In Washington County Criminal Court. The Teen Was Charged After A Loaded .22 Caliber Handgun Was Found In A Pocket Of A Trench Coat He Was Wearing At The School. The Charges Against Neis-Eldridge Will Be Taken Off His Record Upon Successful Completion Of 12 Months On Probation.

A Preliminary Hearing For The School Bus Driver Involved In A Crash In Washington County Tennessee That Injured 39 Students Has Been Pushed Back Until Next Month In Washington County General Sessions Court. 54 Year Old Brenda Gray Is Charged With Eight Counts Of Aggravated Reckless Assault And 31 Counts Of Reckless Endangerment. Gray Lost Control Of Her Bus That Was Traveling Along The Roadway On A Curve. It Rolled Over Twice. Gray Will Appear In Court Next On November 13th.

Tennessee Department of Health officials say the state’s death toll from an outbreak of fungal meningitis has risen to six. Dr. John Dreyzhener, Tennessee’s health commissioner, said the total number of cases in the state has increased by four and now stands at 39. The cases all stem from steroid injections for back pain and officials say evidence points to contaminated medicine as the cause of the rare disease. The outbreak involves 10 states but Tennessee so far has reported the greatest number of cases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday that there have been 119 infections and 11 deaths across the nation.

Kingsport Authorities Are Asking For The Public’s Help In Locating The Man Who Allegedly Robbed A City Business. A White Male, Wearing A Grey Hooded Sweatshirt, Jeans, And Sunglasses Is Accused Of Entering Check Cash Express And Displayed A Handgun. After Demanding Money From The Clerk, The Bandit Then Fled The Area On Foot With An Undetermined Amount Of Money. Anyone With Any Information On The Robbery Is Asked To Contact Kingsport Police.

Kingsport Mayor Dennis Phillips Has Proclaimed Today Energy Star Day. The Proclamations Marks The 20th Anniversary Of Energy Star And Commends Citizens For Saving Energy And Protecting The Environment. The City Of Kingsport Joins Eastman Chemical Company, A 2012 Energy Star Partner Of The Year, In Celebrating Energy Star Day. Over The Past 20 Years, Energy Star Has Helped American Families And Businesses Save About 230 Billion Dollars On Utility Bills And Prevented More Than 1.7 Billon Metric Tons Of Carbon Pollution.

A Kingsport Man Is Behind Bars Following A Stabbing Incident Earlier This Week. 56 Year Old Ronnie Boggs Is Charged With Aggravated Assault. The Charge Stems From An Altercation With A 42 Year Old Man On Sullivan Street. The Stabbing Victim, Who Was Transported To Holston Valley Medical Center, Was Treated And Released. Boggs Was Booked Into The City Jail. A Court Date For Him Is Pending In Kingpsort General Sessions Court.

The Jonesborough Board Of Mayor And Alderman Has Approved A Bond Issue To Help Fund A 5.5 Million Dollar Expansion Of The Town’s Wastewater Treatment System. The Bond Amount Totaled 1.15 Million Dollars To Use Towards The First Phase Of The Project. Construction Of Two 500-Thousand Gallon Basins Will Triple The Capacity Of The Wastewater Treatment Plant On Britt Drive. According To Town Administrator Bob Browning, Crews Are Currently Ahead Of Schedule On The Project, So He Believes The Facility Can Go Online Next Spring.

Greene County Is Gearing Up For The State’s Annual Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event. The Event Provides Tennessee Residents A Free And Safe Way Of Disposing Of Household Hazardous Waste. Items Should Be Left In Their Originial Containers, With Lids And Caps Tightened. Pack All Items Separately In Sturdy Boxes And Do Not Put Items In Plastic Garbage Bags. The Event Will Be Held Saturday From 9am To 1pm In The Parking Lot Of Hal Henard School On East Vann Road.

East Tennessee State University Will Hold A Grand Opening For The New Johnson City Community Health Center On Thursday. Leaders From The University Will Be Joined By Federal, State, And Local Elected Officials As The Ribbon Is Cut On The State-Of-The-Art Facility Which Was Funded By A 6.8 Million Dollar Grant From The U.S. Health Resources And Services Administration. The New Facility Is Located At 2151 Century Lane Behind Woodridge Hospital Off North State Of Franklin Road. The Dedication Is Set For 10 A.M.

The Virginia Court of Appeals has affirmed the convictions of a former eighth-grade science teacher who sent sexually explicit images and messages to a teenage boy. Connie Beth Klewer of Lebanon was convicted of electronic solicitation of a minor, possession of child pornography and using an electronic system to expose her sexual parts. She was sentenced to more than 22 years in prison. Klewer claimed on appeal that photos of her breasts that she electronically transmitted to the boy were not “sexual parts” as defined by the law. The appeals court ruled that she couldn’t raise that claim on appeal because she didn’t bring it up at trial.

A Hawkins County Man And His Wife Have Been Charged With Two Counts Of Tenncare Fraud. 28 Year Old Bradley Scott Neal Is Accused Of Aiding And Abetting His Wife In Her Attempt To Acquire A Controlled Substance And Later Selling A Portion Of It. Neal Is Being Held In The Hawkins County Jail. Meanwhile, His Wife, 24 Year Od Christine Thacker Has Been Charged With Two Counts Of Tenncare Fraud. The Couple Allegedly Using The Wife’s Tenncare Benefits To Obtain A Prescription For Subutex, A Drug Used To Treat Heroin Addiction, While Planning To Sell A Portion Of The Drug.

Virginia is reporting 24 cases of suspected meningitis among nearly 700 back pain patients who received steroid shots that may have been contaminated with a potentially deadly fungus. Public health officials said 689 people received back pain shots at two clinics – one in Roanoke, the other in Christiansburg. Officials are still attempting to reach out to everyone who received the possibly tainted shots. Of the 24 suspected cases reported so far, one person has died. Three of the 24 are West Virginia residents who received the pain treatment in Virginia. The state reported five suspected cases last week.

The Virginia State Bar Has Disciplined An Attorney For Failing To Provide Evidence To A Former Client Who Was Convicted Of Rape In Wise County. The Public Reprimand Was Issued To Abingdon Based Attorney Stephanie Pease In September By The State Bar’s 10th District Section Ii Subcomittee. Pease Obtained Videos Relevant To The Proceedings Against Her Client And She Claims She Did Not Introduce The Evidence Because She Believed It Could Potentially Do More Harm Than Good.

A Water Outage Beginning Wednesday Morning Will Affect A Portion Of Carter County. Beginning At 9 A.M. And Lasting Until Repairs Are Complete, The Outage Will Affect A Portion Of The Blue Springs Community – From Bill Nave Loop To Bishop Hollow.

The Jonesborough Board Of Mayor And Alderman Has Approved A Bond Issue To Help Fund A 5.5 Million Dollar Expansion Of The Town’s Wastewater Treatment System. The Bond Amount Totaled 1.15 Million Dollars To Use Towards The First Phase Of The Project, Which Includes The Construction Of Two 500-Thousand Gallon Treatment Basins That Will Triple The Capacity Of The Wastewater Treatment Plant On Britt Drive.

A Kingsport Man Accused Of Shooting A Bristol Woman Multiple Times At A Model City Business Has A Trial Date Set In Sullivan County Criminal Court. 24 Year Old Michael Bunche Is Charged With Attempted First Degree Murder, Theft Over 500 And Unlawful Carrying Or Possession Of A Handgun In The New Year’s Day Shooting At Waffle House On East Stone Drive. Attorney Cliff Corker Was Appointed To Represent Bunche. 30 Year Old Kristen Smith Was At The Restaurant With A Friend. When She Went To The Bathroom And Returned, He Allegedly Started Firing On Her Until His Handgun Was Empty. Smith, Who Didn’t Know Bunche, Survived The Ordeal. Bunche Has A Trial Date Set For March 4th, 2013.

Tennessee Senator Mike Faulk Has Said A Majority Of The Cost For Rogersville’s New Water Filtration System Will Be Paid For With A Half-A-Million Dollars Community Development Block Grant. Rogersville Leaders Decided Earlier This Year To Pay 100-Thousand Dollars For A Three Year Old MIEX Filtration System That A Utility System In Ohio Was Selling After Building A New Water Plant. That Same System Would Have Cost 1.35 Million New. Installation Of The New Filtration System Is Expected To Be Completed By Next Spring.