FROM THE RADIO NEWS DEPARTMENT

The Tennessee Highway Patrol Is Investigating An Incident In Washington County Tennessee In Which A 12-Year Old Girl Was Struck By A Car While Waiting On The School Bus. It Happened Around Six Thirty Monday Morning On State Route 81 Near Jonesborough. A Driver Going In The Opposite Direction Struck The Girl. She Told Police She Was Going The Speed Limit Which Is 45 Miles Per Hour, But The Bus Driver Did Not Completely Stop, Did Not Put Out Her Stop Sign, Or Turn On The Bus’ Lights When Picking Up The Child. The Child Received Minor Injuries. The Investigation Is Continuing.

A Scott County Virginia Woman Accused In The Shooting Death Of Her Husband And Leaving His Dead Body In Their Home For Almost A Month, Will Stand Trial Next Year In Circuit Court. 41 Year Old Melissa Napier Of Yuma, Is Charged With First Degree Murder, Concealment Of A Dead Body, Use Of A Firearm In The Commission Of A Felony And Attempting To Defile A Dead Body. The Charges Stem From The March Death Of Her Husband, 74 Year Old Billy Ray Napier. She Allegedly Told Authorities That She And Her Husband Had Been In An Argument Over Financial Difficulties The Day Of The Shooting. A Plea Hearing Is Set For April 5th With Her Trial Date Set For May 24th. She Remains In Custody At This Time.

A Rogersville Woman Has Been Ordered To Spend Time Behind Bars After She Plead Guilty To Theft Charges. 58 Year Old Judy Dinsmore Admitted To Theft Of Social Security Benefits In May. She Admitted To Arranging To Have The Social Security Administration Deliver 347 Monthly Supplemental Security Income Benefits For A Deceased Relative To Her Home For 29 Years After The Relative Died In 1982. Dinsmore Was Sentenced To 30 Months Behind Bars And Is To Be Be Placed On Probation For Three Years Upon Her Release From Jail.

Kingsport Mayor Dennis Phillips Wants To Retain A Full-Time Lobbying Firm To Represent The City In Nashville. Phillips Believes This Could Help The Model City Stay Current On Issues That Affect It And Keep Competitive. City Manager John Campbell Has Requested A Survey Of Cities Comparable In Size To Kingsport By The Municipal Technical Advisory Service At The University Of Tennessee Institute For Public Service. Campbell Hopes To Have The Information Back To City Leaders By December 18th.

The Tennessee Supreme Court Has Disbarred A Former Hawkins County Prosecutor. The Board Of Professional Responsibility Filed The Petition Against John Douglas Godbee Charging Him With Official Misconduct And, While Acting As Assistant District Attorney, Soliciting And Or Receiving Sexual Favors From Female Defendants In Exchange For Consideration On Their Cases. Godbee Submitted A Conditional Guilty Plea Which Was Approved By A Hearing Panel.

A Bristol Tennessee Man Accused In A Christmas 2011 Murder In Scott County Virginia Has Been Extradited Back To The Commonwealth. 36 Year Old Daniel Norris Is Charged With Capital Murder, Robbery And Weapons Charges In Connection The Shooting Death Of Gregory Hale. Up Until Recently, Norris Was Being Held In Sullivan County Tennessee On A Probation Violation. His Alleged Accomplice, 60 Year Old Charlie Ramey Has Been Jailed In Scott County On Murder And Robbery Charges Since He Was Arrested In April For His Alleged Role Hale’s Death. Norris And Ramey Are Being Held In The Southwest Virginia Regional Jail In Duffield. No Court Dates Have Been Announced.

Thanks To The Efforts Of AARP And Walgreene’s, Five State Food Banks Including Second Harvest Food Bank Of Northeast Tennessee In Gray, Have Received Some Much-Needed Funding. Second Harvest, Along With Four Other Food Banks In The State, Will Each Receive 5-Thousand Dollars To Help The Hungry. Tennessee’s Five Feeding America Food Banks Provide 50 Million Meals Each Year To Food Pantries, Soup Kitchens, And Shelters Across The State.

The Bristol Virginia Police Department Is Continuing Its Investigation Into A Deadly Weekend Shooting. It Happened Early Sunday Morning Just Off Exit Five Of Lee Highway. Police Said They Found 24 Year Old Chase Robins Lying Just Off The Roadway On A Creek Bank With At Least One Gunshot Wound. 34 Year Old Dan Buchanan Of Bristol Virginia Is Charged With First Degree Murder In Connection With Robins Death. Buchanan Is Currently Being Held In The Bristol Virginia Jail Without Bond.

A Carter County Grand Jury Has Indicted A Couple Accused Of Killing An Elderly Man. Timothy Pate And Whitney Harris Are Charged With First-Degree Murder, Felony Murder And Tampering With Evidence In The April 17th Death Of 78 Year Old Lonnie Townsend. The Motive For The Killing Was Allegedly Over Money. After The Murder, Townsend’s Body Was Rolled Up In Carpet And Dumped.

The Crisis Center In Bristol Virginia Is Going To Attempt To Remain Open, But Without Providing Domestic Violence Support. The Center’s Current Six-Member Board Voted Recently To Keep Going Due To An Influx Of Potential Volunteers. In Addition, Leaders Of The Organization Have Scheduled Fundraising Events. Instead Of Completely Doing Away With The Domestic Violence Support Program, The Agency Wants To Shift That Program To Abuse Alternatives.

Kingsport Educational Leaders Have Decided To Move Forward With Asking City Leaders To Enter Into The Design Phase For The Proposed 4.2 Million Dollar D-B High School Football Stadium Renovations. The Plan Includes Adding 1-Thousand Seats To The 1943 Football Grandstand. In Addition, Renovations Would Include A New Press Box And New Areas For Concessions, Handicapped Accessibility And Restrooms As Well As Wider Aisles And Hand Rails In Part Of The Old Concrete Grandstand And New Covered Concourses. If Work Gets Underway As Soon As Educational Leaders Hope, The Construction Could Be Completed By August Of Next Year.

A Sullivan County Man Has Been Resentenced And Will Spend The Rest Of His Life In Prison Instead Of Receiving The Death Penalty. Leonard Smith Was Convicted In The Shooting Death Of Store Clerk Novella Webb In May 1984. He Also Received A Life Sentence For His Role In The Shooting Death Of John Shorty Pierce At Another Store On The Same Night. A Series Of Court Appeals Overturned His Death Sentence And He Was Sentenced To Life.

A Public Hearing Regarding The Tennessee State Route 126 Project In Sullivan County Has Been Announced. The Tennessee Department Of Transportation Has Set Two Hearings For Tuesday December 11th. The First Hearing Will Be At 11:30am At The Kingsport Civic Auditorium On Fort Henry Drive. The Second Hearing Will Take Place That Evening At 6pm In The Sullivan Central High School Gym On Shipley Ferry Road In Blountville.

It Was A Happy Time For Officials With United Way Of Kingsport. The Organization Was Able To Not Only Meet Its Goal Of 3.75 Million, But Exceed It By Nearly Four Thousand Dollars. The Bulk Of The Donations Come From The Employees Of The City’s Largest Industries, Such As Eastman, Domtar And BAE Systems. The Money Will Be Distributed To Over 24 Member Agencies Throughout The Community.