FRIDAY 161st YEAR • NO. 276 MARCh 18, 2016 CLEVELAND, TN 24 PAGES • 50¢ Former educators eye potential school board races By ALLEN MINCEY currently held by George Meacham. District 3. Lillios, Rodney Dillard, Amanda Lee as well as for District 5. Banner Staff Writer Meacham has turned in his petition to The newest potential candidates and Charlie Rose; Francis McCartney Others who have picked up petitions run for that post again this year. who have picked up petitions include and Donna McDermott for Charleston include Sherman McCleary for Several petitions have been picked Other former educators who have Jim Bryson for county school board City Council; and David May, Dale Charleston City Council, Tom Cassada up for the local election set for August, picked up and/or turned in petitions District 6, Pam Edgemon for Cleveland Hughes, George Poe, Steve Morgan for Cleveland City Council District 3, including some former educators who include Teddy Bryson for Bradley City Council District 3, Don Ritzhaupt and Meacham for Cleveland City Mary Baier for Cleveland City Council are vying for positions on local school County School Bord District 3, Jerry for Cleveland City Council District 3, Council. Avery Johnson, incumbent District 5, Gary Dustin Elliott for boards. Frazier for county school board and Krista McKay for Cleveland School 3rd District Cleveland City Cleveland City School Board at-large, One of the latest to pick up a peti- District 7 and Nancy Casson for coun- Board District 2. Councilman, has decided to run for and Timothy Rader for Cleveland City tion is former Yates Primary School ty school board District 1. Former Incumbents who have picked up the council as an at-large candidate, School Board at-large. Principal Carolyn Ingram. She has Bradley County Schools educator Mike petitions and those who have turned and will take on Poe for that seat. Larry Bryant, who had picked up a picked up her petition for Cleveland Plumley has picked up and turned in them in include county school board Jonathan Porter has picked up a peti- City School Board District 1, a seat his petition for Cleveland City Council members Chris Turner, Nicholas tion for that position on the council, See RACES, Page 10 Bulletin Internet Inmate death at Bradley jail providers is investigated donated From Staff Reports The Bradley County Sheriff’s Office has report- ed an inmate became ill to races Friday morning and later died at Tennova Healthcare in Cleveland. of House The inmate, Hershell C. Dover, 53, had been in cus- tody since Wednesday. BCSO’s Criminal members Investigations Division secured the scene pending Same legislators the start of an investigation by the Tennessee Bureau involved in vote of Investigation. District Attorney General Stephen By BRIAN GRAVES Crump has been notified of Banner Staff Writer the death. Donations from major telecom- As it becomes available, munications companies dot the more information will be contribution lists of state repre- provided on the Cleveland Banner photo, ALLEN MINCEY sentatives who voted both for and Daily Banner website and against the broadband bill earlier in Sunday’s print edition. SPECIAL GRADUATION CEREMONIES were held Thursday night at E.L. Ross Elementary School for the Girl Scouts who went through the radKIDS program coordinated by the Cleveland Police Department. From left are (front row) Madeline McBrayer, Ava this week in Nashville. The House Business and Wenger, Ashley Pesterfield, Ayonna DeLuca, Deirdre McKelvey, Ava Robbins, Caroline Condo, Madilyn Taylor and Eva Laslie; second Utilities subcommittee voted Inside Today row: Brooke Jones, Emmaline Hill, Hannah Jones, Tatum Hale and Anna Longest; back row: Estraya Laslie (Troop 40949 leader), CPD down a bill sponsored by state Officers Jennifer Samples and Whitney Owens, and Dana Longest (Troop 40949 leader). Rep. Kevin Brooks and state Rep. Dan Howell which would have allowed EPB of Chattanooga to offer high-speed broadband to Bradley County residents. Girl Scouts get punchy Brooks went before the com- mittee Wednesday and, acknowl- edging the votes were not there for the original bill, offered an Youngsters learn defensive skills in training amendment which would have created a “pilot” program targeted at allowing an EPB-Bradley con- through radKIDS program offered by CPD nection. Neither Brooks nor Howell By ALLEN MINCEY serve on the committee. Banner Staff Writer The measure was voted down One can never start too early teaching young girls how to say 5-3, essentially killing the bill for “no” when approached by strangers, and in addition to that, this session. Softball at its best these youngsters are also being taught some defensive skills Both of the county’s state rep- A determined group of through the radKIDS program. resentatives have been consistent Cleveland Lady Raiders battled to “Resisting Aggression Defensively, or RAD, is the most com- in bemoaning the number of lob- the finish with the Walker Valley prehensive safety program for kids 3 1/2 to 13 years old,” byists who crowded the State Lady Mustangs on the softball explained Officer Jennifer Samples of the Cleveland Police Capitol in an effort to influence field Thursday, but could not pull Department. legislators and defeat the bill. off an upset. The Blue Raiders Samples has been a radKIDS instructor since 2007, and was A review of the committee tied Maryville on the soccer pitch. recently joined by Officer Whitney Owens, who just became cer- members’ financial disclosures The Bradley Central Bears again tified. showed all have been beneficiar- rolled on the baseball diamond. “The program covers abduction defense, gun defense, bully ies of financial campaign contri- Lee slugger Ben Holland is clos- defense, dog defense, and at the very end, the kids get to put on butions from the large telecom- ing out his career with the Flames pads and actually defend themselves against an abduction,” munications companies. in a big way. See Sports, Pages Samples said. “They get to know that they can not only tell The five who voted to defeat the 13-15. someone ‘no,’ but they can defend themselves and not wait for bill and their contributions as someone to come and save me, ‘but I can save myself.’” reported by the Tennessee Forecast A special radKIDS program was recently held with Girl Scouts Registry of Election Finance of the Southern Appalachians Troop 40949 at E.L. Ross were: Today looks to be partly sunny, Elementary School. The troop graduated from the program —State Rep. Kent Calfee (R- Thursday evening, with their parents and guardians, along with Kingston) reported a $1,000 con- with a high near 72. Tonight’s fore- tribution from the AT&T cast calls for cloudy skies and a 30 siblings, in attendance. Most of those who graduated were in the 8- to 9-year-old range. Tennessee PAC received in percent chance of showers, with a September 2015. low around 49. Saturday calls for —State Rep. Patsy Hazlewood mostly cloudy skies and a cooling See KIDS, Page 10 (R-Chattanooga) was once assis- trend, with a 60 percent chance of tant vice president for legislative showers and a high near 57. and external affairs for BellSouth “I think it has made her more confident, more aware and ATT. In layman’s terms, Index of her surroundings, and more aware of what she can Hazlewood was a paid lobbyist for do to avoid certain situations or defend herself in the communications giant. She Church........................................8-9 certain dangerous situations.” Banner photo, ALLEN MINCEY received $500 from Comcast in Classified................................20-23 — Dana Longest AVA ROBBINS defends herself from radKIDS instructor 2015. She also reported contri- butions of $500 and $1,000 from Comics.........................................17 Whitney Owens during Thursday night’s final meeting of the group. Editorials......................................16 See INTERNET, Page 10 Horoscope....................................17 Obituaries.......................................2 Stocks............................................4 Hiwassee River Sports......................................13-15 Wacker looks to grand opening TV Schedule...........................18-19 Clean-Up Day Weather........................................11 set Saturday and ‘sunny, bright future’: Burk Around Town By ALLEN MINCEY By BRIAN GRAVES batch produced “sold immediately.” She said there has been much progress at the Sandy Denney enjoying her Banner Staff Writer Banner Staff Writer site since the groundbreaking in 2011. big day and some great cake ... Volunteers who wish to partici- The headline on the screen at the Chamber “We had 237,500 dump trucks move 8 million Chuck Thurmond accidentally try- pate in the Hiwassee River Clean- presentation said it all: “A Sunny, Bright Future cubic yards of soil,” Burk said. “Those trucks ing to purchase gas with a “non- Up Day should be at the for Charleston, TN.” from end to end on the highway would go from gas card” ... Sylvia Pitts making Hiwassee/Ocoee State Park office Specifically, it was referring to the future of Charleston to Denver.” pillowcases for the Million Saturday morning. Wacker Polysilicon which is now up and running, She said there were 145,000 cubic yards of Pillowcase Challenge charity ... The Tennessee State Parks and planning a grand-opening ceremony April 18. concrete poured at the site. Drake Runyon being congratulat- agency is asking those who wish Dr. Erika Burk, senior director of human “That’s the equivalent of pouring concrete on a ed on a dream coming true. to help with the cleanup to be at resources for Wacker Polysilicon North America football field from end zone to end zone and fill- the office by 9 a.m. Saturday. LLC, spoke at the Cleveland/Bradley Chamber of ing it 70 feet deep,” Burk said. The office is located at 404 Commerce’s first quarterly “Food for Thought” She noted the facility’s distillation columns are Spring Creek Road in Delano, membership luncheon on Thursday afternoon.