Local News Articles

The woman charged with second degree murder in the death of her newborn last week made a brief appearance in DeKalb County General Sessions Court today (Wednesday).

18 year old Lillian Elizebeth Sosa appeared before Judge Bratten Cook II without an attorney.

In determining if she was indigent, Judge Cook, through an interpreter, asked Sosa if she owned any property, assets, or money with which she might could afford to hire an attorney. She indicated "no".

Judge Cook then appointed the District Public Defender to represent Sosa.

Sosa made no request to reduce the bond, which is set at one million dollars. The only mention of bond was by Judge Cook who gave orders that he be made aware of any attempts by Sosa to make bond, so he could approve it, before she is released.

She is due back in General Sessions Court on Thursday, November 8th, unless a bond reduction hearing is held earlier.

The Smithville Fiddler's Jamboree Board of Directors has adopted a new policy on the use of the stage during the annual festival.

According to Frank Buck, attorney for the Jamboree board, "The Smithville Fiddler's Jamboree and Crafts Festival Board met on October 25th and adopted a policy that applies to all persons, clubs, and organizations."

The policy states that " Due to continued growth and time constraints, the Jamboree Board has noted that we cannot offer stage time to any organization or group in the community wishing to perform, other than paid contestants, during the Smithville Fiddler's Jamboree and Crafts Festival. This applies to contestants or groups on Thursday night."

The DeKalb County Sheriff's Department, acting on a tip, has arrested three alleged major drug dealers.

Sheriff Patrick Ray says on Saturday, October 27th, detectives received information that 31 year old
Gregory W. Hallback of Adcock Cemetery Road, Smithville, 26 year old Kenneth Lee Bain, and 23 year old Amanda Gail Bain of King Ridge Road, Dowelltown were bringing in a load of dilaudid from Nashville.

According to Sheriff Ray, "Detectives located a vehicle which belonged to Hallback and stopped it on Highway 70 at the city limits of Smithville. Detectives found hypodermic needles on Amanda Bain. She told detectives that when Hallback saw them behind his vehicle, he gave her the hypodermic needles and told her to put them in her pants because the police would not search a woman there. Kenneth Bain also had one and one half dilaudid pills inside a small container hidden in his sock."

"After transporting all three back to the Sheriff's Department for further questioning, Officers learned that Amanda Bain had taken a metal container from Hallback when they saw the detectives and she inserted it in her body cavity. When Detectives retrieved the metal container, it contained 102 K-4 dilaudid pills."

All three were charged with possession of a schedule II drug (dilaudid) for sale and delivery and Kenneth Bain was also charged with possession of a schedule II drug (dilaudid) and possession of drug paraphernalia. Amanda Bain was further charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and introduction of drugs into a penal institution.

Bond for both Kenneth and Amanda Bain was $55,000 each and Hallback's bond was set at $52,500. The court date for all three is November 15th.

Meanwhile, in another case, 19 year old Jonathon Dewayne Adcock of Old Mill Hill Road, Dowelltown was charged on October 22nd with driving on a suspended license, possession of drug paraphernalia, driving an unregistered vehicle, and simple possession.

Sheriff Ray says "a county deputy, while on patrol, observed a vehicle on Old Mill Hill Road without a license plate. The deputy turned around and saw the vehicle pulling into a driveway which was at the owner's (Adcock's) residence. The deputy asked Adcock for his driver's license and learned that it was suspended. Adcock told the officer that the title to the vehicle was in his residence and when the deputy entered the home to take a look at it, he smelled marijuana. The officer also noticed a box containing marijuana lying on the living room table. Adcock was then arrested. His bond is $3,000 and his court date is November 8th.

33 year old Robin Clark Green and 37 year old Julie Anna Bogle were arrested Wednesday, October 24th at their residence at Adamson Branch Road, Liberty.

Sheriff Ray says "On July 17th, deputies and authorities from Children Services went to a residence on Evins Mill Road, Smithville where Green and Bogle were living. Officials found Bogle's 12 year old daughter living there at the home with Green who is a registered sex offender and didn't have permission to be around the 12 year old child."

"A warrant was issued for Green and he has been on the run ever since. Deputies had information that Green and Bogle had moved to Adamson Branch Road in Liberty and they had attempted to locate Green on numerous occasions at that address. Bogle told officers that she had not seen Green and did not know of his whereabouts."

"On October 24th, deputies went back to the residence on Adamson Branch Road and when they approached the front door, Bogle opened up and then quickly shut the door, informing Green that deputies were there to arrest him. Green then fled out a back door of the residence, but the officers stopped him. As they were trying to handcuff Green, he resisted by fighting with the deputies, not allowing them to cuff him. Green also had in his possession marijuana and rolling papers."

"The officers then returned to the residence and attempted to arrest Bogle for harboring Green. Bogle also resisted, but was finally cuffed and transported to the DeKalb County Jail."

Green is charged with violation of the sex offender law, evading arrest, resisting arrest, simple possession, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Green's bond is at $18,500 and his court date is November 22nd.

Bogle was charged with criminal responsibility for conduct of another and resisting arrest. Her bond is $5,000 and her court date is November 22nd.

In another case, Sheriff Ray says on October 24th, 23 year old Michael Brandon Redmon of McMinnville Highway was found to have in his possession on Hurricane Ridge Road, a stolen vehicle out of Warren County.

"Deputies recovered the vehicle and brought Redmon to the DeKalb County Jail for questioning. Upon a search of Redmon's socks and shoes at the jail, he was found to have a small amount of marijuana in one of his socks."

Redmon was arrested locally for introduction of drugs into a penal institution. His bond is $10,000 and his court date is November 8th. Other charges are pending locally.

Meanwhile, Sheriff Ray says working cooperatively with the Smithville Police Department, two people were arrested on theft charges last Wednesday.

"On October 24th, the Sheriff's Department received a call about a theft on Vaughn Lane. After deputies arrived and talked with the victim, they were advised that 22 year old Nickey Eudene Reece Jr. of Miller Road Smithville and 24 year old Warren Brandon Glasby of Poss Road, Smithville stole items out of a vehicle on Vaughn Lane."

"Deputies informed Smithville Police about the suspects and within minutes, city officers found the two in the parking lot of Reece's apartment complex. The stolen items, including stereo equipment and a cell phone, were found in Glasby's vehicle. DeKalb County detectives also found another cell phone that was reported stolen from a local restaurant in Smithville."

Glasby and Reece were charged with two counts of theft of property and one count of burglary. Bond for both is $22,500 each and their court date is November 15th.

18 year old Lillian Elizebeth Sosa of Talley Road, Smithville is in the DeKalb County Jail, charged with second degree murder in the death of her newborn baby on Friday night.

Sosa's bond is set at one million dollars.

She will appear in DeKalb County General Sessions Courton Thursday, November 8th, unless a bond reduction hearing is held earlier.

Sosa was released from the Cookeville Hospital today (Monday) after undergoing emergency surgery Saturday.

Smithville Police Chief Richard Jennings held a press conference with local and Nashville media Sunday afternoon to provide more details about the case and the investigation that led to Sosa's arrest.

Chief Jennings says Sosa, an Hispanic who speaks little or no English, has only been in this country for about a month and lives with relatives at 342 Talley Road, Smithville. She was recently employed as a waitress at the El Rancho Restaurant at 1101 West Broad Street, Smithville and had only worked there one day last week and for an hour and a half Friday, before leaving the restaurant after giving birth to the child and dumping it in a ladies restroom trash can.

According to Chief Jennings, Sosa apparently locked herself in the ladies restroom of the restaurant and gave birth to the child, possibly between 7:20 p.m. and 7:45 p.m. She then came out of the restroom, told her boss that she needed to leave because she was sick, and called for someone to give her a ride home. Sosa's aunt reportedly came to the restaurant and picked her up.

Jennings says the child was discovered around 9:20 p.m. by a waitress, Karla Leon, who went into the ladies rest room to clean up, as staff were preparing to close the restaurant for the night. Leon then reported her discovery to the manager and they called 911. "The officers arrived and talked to the restaurant manager, Alfredo Villa. He said that the baby was discovered when one of the employees was cleaning up the restroom at the end of the business day. Customers had already left the restaurant when she discovered the body."

"In talking to Mr. Villa, we found out that they were very busy that night. They had probably 40 or 42 people in the restaurant during that period of time. We tried to pinpoint the exact time this might have happened and in talking to Mr. Villa we found out that between 7:20 p.m. and 7:45 p.m. was when they were really busy. During that period of time, there was a female customer who complained that she couldn't get in the ladies rest room for about 20 minutes because the door was locked. Eventually, whoever was in there left, and she (female customer) went in to use the rest room and saw blood spots on the floor, on the toilet, and in various places. Mr. Villa sent a waitress, Karla Leon in to clean the rest room. She went in and cleaned it up with bleach."

"They closed the restaurant around 9:20 p.m. and Mr Villa told Karla to go back into the rest rooms to clean them again. When she went in to the women's rest room to clean it up, she noticed that the trash can was a lot heavier than normal. She reached into the trash can, which had a flip top lid on it, looked in and saw a baby's foot sticking up through the towels in the trash bag. She told the manager and they immediately called 911."

Agents Billy Miller and Dan Friel of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation were notified and joined the Smithville Police Department in the investigation later that night, and after interviewing employees, decided they needed to talk to Sosa.

After discovering where she lives, Sheriff Patrick Ray went to the address on Talley Road and picked her up around 4:00 a.m. Saturday. She was brought to the Smithville Police Department, where she was interviewed by the TBI agents.

During the questioning of Sosa through an interpreter, agents determined she was a likely suspect in the case and took her to DeKalb Community Hospital for an examination. The emergency room doctor found that she had recently given birth and suggested that she undergo emergency surgery, because she had suffered some potentially life threatening complications during the delivery.

Sosa was then transported to the Cookeville Hospital early Saturday morning. She came through the surgery fine and is expected to be released Monday, after which she will be taken into custody and charged in the case.

A guard is posted at the hospital around the clock to make sure she dosen't leave before she is released.

Chief Jennings says the baby was sent to Nashville for an autopsy. The infant, a male, fully developed child, weighed 5 pounds, 14 ounces, and was 19 inches long. He says it appears the mother carried the child about eight months.

The exact time of death hasn't been determined, but Chief Jennings says it is believed that the infant was still alive when he was found. " I have a statement from one of the EMT personnel, who stated that when he was getting the child out of the trash can and preparing to transport him to the hospital, he believed he could see the baby's chest rising and falling slightly and believes the child was breathing. However, sometime either during the transport or after the child got to the emergency room, he was pronounced dead. Judging from the condition of the body, there were no marks on the child. He appeared to be perfectly normal. There was no evidence of trauma. The only thing that we discovered was that the umbilical cord was not cut, it was pulled apart."