FROM THE RADIO NEWS DEPARTMENT

The Former Police Chief Of Pennington Gap Virginia Who Was Accused Of Distributing Prescription Painkillers And The Burglary Of A Pharmacy Has Admitted To The Crimes In U.S. District Court In Abingdon. 39 Year Old William Young Of Duffield Pled Guilty To Conspiracy To Possess With Intent To Distribute Oxycodone And Burglary Of Rite-Aid Pharmacy In September Of Last Year. Young’s Co-Defendants, 35 Year Old Kevin Young And 35 Year Old Chris Miles Also Entered Guilty Pleas To Burglary. Prosecutors Claimed The Former Police Chief Arranged The Burglary And Engaged In Numerous Illegal Drug Transitions. William Young Faces Up To 40 Years In Prison When He’s Sentenced On April 12th.

Kingsport Mayor Dennis Phillips Has Said He Plans To Seek A Fifth Term In The Upcoming Election. Phillips Was First Elected In 2005. Meanwhile, Three Aldermen Seats Are Up For Re-Election. Valerie Joh, Tom Parham And John Clark. Parham And Clark Have Both Indicated They Intend To Seek Another Term In The May Election.

The Unicoi County Sheriff’s Office has a better way of getting around in rugged terrain because of a military surplus donation. Sheriff Mike Hensley said the department now has two Humvees that can be used to get to remote locations. Hensley said his department recently picked up the vehicles in South Carolina at no cost to the county. Nearby Washington and Carter counties previously used the military surplus program to obtain vehicles. The four-wheel-drive Humvees have high ground clearance and will be used for off-road travel and also on snow-covered roads.

The Washington County Tennessee Administrator Of Elections Is Getting A More Than 16-Thousand Dollar A Year Raise. The County Election Commission Voted To Boost Administrator Maybell Stewart’s Salary From 51-Thousand Dollars To Just Over 67-Thousand Dollars, An Amount Equal Or Greater Than A State-Certified Administrator.