Smithville Police Department Kept Busy in May

May 30, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

The month of May was a busy one for the Smithville Police Department.

Chief Mark Collins reports the following arrests:

38-year-old Charlena Hill of Smithville is charged with public intoxication. Chief Collins said that on May 22 police were summoned to North Congress Boulevard where a woman was spotted walking in the middle of the road and was almost hit by a vehicle. Upon arrival, officers found the woman, Hill in the middle of the road and while speaking to her they noticed that she seemed to be impaired. Hill was placed in custody. Her bond was set at $2,000 and she will be in court June 5.

30-year-old Ashley Spivey of Gainesboro is charged with aggravated criminal trespassing and public intoxication. Chief Collins said that on May 20 police responded to South College Street on an unwanted intoxicated person call. Upon arrival officers spoke with the homeowners who reported that they did not know the woman, Spivey and that she had entered their home uninvited. While speaking with Spivey, the officers noticed that she seemed to be impaired. Spivey was placed in custody. Her bond is $5,500 and she will be in court June 5.

20-year-old John Lawson of Smithville is cited for contributing to the delinquency of a minor and possession of a vape product. According to Chief Collins, police were called to Walmart May 16 on a fight complaint and upon arrival found Lawson and detected a strong odor of marijuana coming from his vehicle. A juvenile was also in the same automobile and the teen was cited for simple possession of a schedule VI drug and possession of a vape product. Lawson’s court date is June 12.

47-year-old Brian Timberman of Smithville is cited for inhalants. Chief Collins said that on May 16 police were called to AAA Coatings where an employee was reported to be intoxicated. Upon arrival officers spoke with management and the employee, Timberman. He (Timberman) admitted to having inhaled contents of an aerosol can while at work. He was escorted off the property. Timberman’s court date is June 5.

62-year-old Frank Reynolds, Jr. of Smithville is charged with domestic assault and violation of an order of protection. According to Chief Collins, police responded to Estes Street on May 15 due to a domestic complaint. Upon arrival officers found evidence of an assault and determined that Reynolds was the primary aggressor. Police also learned that Reynolds was under an order to keep away from a person on the scene. Reynolds was placed in custody. His bond is $6,500.

57-year-old Michael White of Smithville is charged with DUI and cited for driving on roadways laned for traffic. Chief Collins said that on May 15 officers were summoned to Walmart due to a DUI. While enroute an officer spotted a vehicle traveling in the middle of the road on Anthony Avenue and pulled it over. While speaking with the driver, White, the officer noticed that he seemed to be impaired. White submitted to but performed poorly on field sobriety tasks. White was placed in custody.

25-year-old Faedra Burns of Smithville is charged with domestic assault and resisting arrest. According to Chief Collins, police were called to Smith Road May 9 due to a domestic in progress complaint. Upon arrival officers found evidence of an assault and determined that Burns was the primary aggressor. During the investigation, Burns became upset and started yelling before trying to flee on foot. After officers caught up with Burns she started physically trying to fight them. Burns was placed in custody. Her bond was set at $5,000.

18-year-old Fredrick Oberdier of Smithville is charged with underage consumption. Chief Collins said that on May 4 an officer was on general patrol at 2:33 a.m. on East Broad Street when he spotted a suspicious man outside a business. Upon stopping and speaking with the man, Oberdier the officer noticed that he seemed to be impaired. Oberdier told the officer that he had just turned 18 and had a lot to drink. He was placed in custody. His bond is $2,500.

May 29, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

A move toward county zoning seems to have stalled at least for now.

View Proposed County Zoning Map at link below)

Proposed Zoning Map

In recent months the DeKalb County Regional Planning Commission has been conducting a study, at the request of the county commission (11-1 vote last September), on the development of a plan for county zoning, outside the municipalities. A resolution is in the works, and a proposed county zoning map was unveiled at the April planning commission meeting. At that time the planning commission decided to send the proposed map to the full county commission for review and if the commission still wanted to move forward changes could be made before or after it was sent back to the planning commission for further study. The planning commission’s final recommendation for passage of a county zoning resolution and map, which could still be months away, must then return to the county commission for a vote on implementation followed by a public hearing. But instead of making progress on zoning, the effort seems to have stalled with a more divided county commission.

During Thursday night’s regular monthly meeting, the county commission took two separate votes but neither failed to get a majority from the 14-member body on making any recommendation back to the planning commission.

The first motion was made by Commissioner Larry Green to “send it back to the planning commission for further study”. Commissioner Tony Luna offered a second to the motion. Although the vote was 7 to 4 in favor it failed because 8 votes (of the 14 member commission) were needed to make it official. Three commissioners, Myron Rhody, Tom Chandler, and Tony “Cully” Culwell were absent. Those voting in favor in addition to Commissioners Green and Luna were Beth Pafford, Andy Pack, Mathias Anderson, Brandon Donnell, and Sabrina Farler. Commissioners voting no were Greg Matthews, Glynn Merriman, Daniel Cripps, and Jeff Barnes. Both Matthews and Barnes (no votes) are members of the planning commission. Commissioners Pafford and Pack are also planning commission members.

Commissioner Luna later in the meeting moved to table the discussion until the next county commission workshop in June and Commissioner Green seconded the motion. But again the result was 7-4 in favor with 8 votes needed for approval.

The issue may still be revisited by the county commission later and it doesn’t preclude the planning commission from continuing its study.

“I don’t like this. It’s 14 people (county commission) telling county residents what they can do with their property. Its more government over people. I don’t like that and I don’t think its fair,” said Merriman.

“All this is just exploring. We are not passing anything tonight,” replied Commissioner Luna.

Commissioner Pafford said a fair hearing should be given on the study.”

“We really haven’t talked about this a whole lot. The map was just presented to us a couple of months ago. He (Tommy Lee, Director of the Upper Cumberland Development District, who serves as UCDD staff planner and advisor to DeKalb County) said it’s the initial one and we should get feedback. I believe it has to go before the public for a hearing before it can ever get passed by the county commission. Other counties have taken a couple of years to get it (zoning) worked out. Now that we have (discovered) a (county) growth plan we could use that in the study. All the information the planning commission can get would be helpful,” said Commissioner Pafford.

At the meeting in April, Lee explained what the planning commission has accomplished to date.

“For the last six months or so the planning commission has been working on a proposed zoning resolution to regulate land use within unincorporated DeKalb County. To go along with that resolution, you must have a zoning map which identifies every parcel in unincorporated DeKalb County and places a zoning designation on that parcel. Tonight (Monday, April 14) what we did was the planning commission reviewed the proposed zoning map and recommended that the county commission review it and give us some feedback on it,” said Lee.

Using neighboring Cannon County’s zoning ordinance as a model, Lee explained that the proposed DeKalb County resolution and zoning map also has basically four zoning districts: residential, commercial, industrial, and agriculture.

“There are four different designations on the zoning map. The color green represents agriculture and makes up about 95% of the county. The yellow designation is for residential. Purple is for industrial and red is for commercial lots,” said Lee.

In September, the county commission voted 11-1 to authorize the county planning commission to begin the process of establishing criteria for zoning in DeKalb County outside the municipalities which already have zoning subject to a public hearing and final adoption by the county commission.

May 29, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

The county budget committee Tuesday night gave a thumbs up on passage of the proposed spending plans for the local highway department, schools, non-profit requests, and local purpose (local option sales tax) fund for the 2025-26 fiscal year subject to final approval by the county commission.

The county highway department is funded primarily from state revenues but the county budgets 0.0326 cents (less than 4 cents) of the property tax rate for the operation, which is going from $204,924 this past year to $206,000 in 2025-26. The county road department also gets $30,000 a year from the local mineral severance tax.

The school budget, as adopted by the board of education, includes local bonuses of $2,000 per educator for those not eligible for a bonus in the state’s school voucher law and a $1,000 local bonus for each member of the (non-certified) support staff. Also included in the school budget (from the fund balance or reserves) was $1.3 million for the future purchase of land for another school.

The committee Tuesday night approved the school budget, but instead of asking the board of education to pull $1.3 million from the reserves, it adopted something the board had not requested but perhaps would not object to and that is appropriating $1.3 million from the local purpose (local option sales tax fund) for the future land purchase. Presumably, the board of education would have to take another vote to re-approve the proposed school budget with the change.

Although he is not a voting member of the school board, County Mayor Matt Adcock said Tuesday night that (Director of Schools) Patrick Cripps is “okay with that”.

The county’s fiscal agent, Steve Bates first made this suggestion at a previous budget committee meeting.

“They (school board) are budgeting $1.3 million for another piece of land to build a new school (either high school or middle school). I would suggest the county tell the school board to take that out (of their budget) and let the county fund it out of local purpose (local option sales tax revenue) because that fund is supposed to be for things like that,” said Bates.

In other business, the budget committee approved the 2025-26 local purpose (local option sales tax) fund.

“Local option sales tax revenue is $4.775 million with a contribution (to school operation annually) of $1,910,000 and $1.3 million (one-time appropriation) has been added to educational capital projects for future school land purchase,” said County Mayor Adcock.

Also approved by the county budget committee is the 2025-26 requests as presented for contributions to non-profit and charitable organizations totaling $366,892, which is down from $411,746 this past year.

Organizations and the requested amounts are as follows:

Upper Cumberland Development District: $ 2,000

Tennessee Forestry Division: $ 1,500

Plateau Mental Health Center: $ 7,180

Senior Program: $ 93,318, up from $88, 919 in 2024-25

DeKalb County Soil Conservation District: $ 100,651, up from $96,968 in 2024-25

DeKalb Animal Coalition: $36,805

Chamber of Commerce: $ 35,000

DeKalb County Rescue Squad: $ 51,321, down from $104,256 in 2024-25

Upper Cumberland Human Resources: $ 5,500

Imagination Library: $ 12,000

Veterans Honor Guard: $ 1,500

DeKalb County Fair: $ 5,000

Fiddlers Jamboree: $ 5,000

Civil War Trails: $400

UCHRA Assessment – Homemaker Aide, etc. $ 9,717

TOTAL NON-PROFITS $ 366,892

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