Taking one for the team, Lori Pepper plays the victim of a crime scene investigation staged during the Citizens Police Academy class held at McMinnville Police Department last week. During the mock investigation, her fellow classmates had to determine how she died, homicide or suicide. This is the third Citizens Police Academy class designed to…

By Duane Sherrill A 12-year-old child is among the local residents targeted in a new mail scam which encourages unwitting victims to become ‘paid customer survey specialists’ in what is a scheme to clean out their bank accounts. ‘This is not a legitimate offer,’ said McMinnville police investigator Nicole Mosley. ‘What happens is they have…

Are McMinnville officials using common sense when it comes to annexation, or are they just running scared? After expressing a desire not to be annexed, some Newtown residents won’t be. But other residents who haven’t voiced opposition might face annexation. City officials have decided not to annex more of Newtown at this time. Although there…

By Charles W. Johnson BARNETT The Morrison man arrested in a local animal abuse case in which a dog’s teeth were filed down, generating national attention and outrage from animal advocates, will now be facing a felony charge. Christopher Lee Barnett, 35, was originally charged with cruelty to animals, a misdemeanor for the first offense.…

WASHINGTON (AP) ‘ The number of newly laid off workers filing for unemployment benefits rose last week to the highest level in nearly two months, providing more evidence that the weak economy is having an adverse impact on the labor market. The Labor Department said Thursday that applications for jobless benefits totaled 378,000 last week.…

By JAMES CLARK With gas prices at an all-time high, motorists have cut back. In the past eight months, the demand for gasoline in the United States has decreased by 11.1 percent, according to the Department of Energy. The questions that remain are how high will gas prices soar, and how much will Americans reduce…

NASHVILLE (AP) ‘ In a seven-minute speech Thursday former Senate Speaker John Wilder announced the conclusion more than four decades of service in the state Senate. Wilder, 86, was the longest-serving presiding officer of a legislative chamber in modern U.S. history until he lost his bid for another stint as speaker last year. ‘I love…

McMinnville resident and Indianapolis, Ind., native Andrea Renae Phillips, age 38, was born Feb. 27, 1970 and died March 16 at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville following an extended illness. A homemaker and a member of the Morrison First Baptist Church, she was the daughter of Jimmy and Lois Dillingham of McMinnville. She was…

By Duane Sherrill Wait, now let me see if I’ve got this right. You want the folks over on North Chancery Street to fork over a part of their land for free as a right-of-way for an expanded road and then you want them, in addition to giving away their land, to pay about $10,000…