Chattanooga Today - June 14, 2013

Hello Chattanooga. Here's a quick look at today's top stories. First of all, a new study shows that black Tennesseans are arrested on pot charges four times as much as whites. That's even though marijuana use among whites and blacks is roughly the same. Blacks make up about 17 percent of Tennessee's population but account for more than 45 percent of marijuana-related arrests. And it turns out that as the number of marijuana arrests has risen, the disparity has gotten worse. In 2001, blacks were nearly twice as likely to be arrested on pot charges. Now, they're nearly four times as likely to be arrested. ____ Next up, a new $40 million dollar road project will mean the biggest changes in decades for drivers exiting Interstate 24 to Chattanooga's Southside and Lookout Mountain. Planners are eyeing a wider eastbound exit lane and a new ramp into the Southside. They're also doing away with many of the existing loops in favor of new interchanges at South Broad, Williams and Market streets. Officials say the changes will open up the southside, making it much easier to get to. The entire project will cost about $37 million dollars. Construction could begin in about three years. _____ A new reports shows there's been no federal inspection of Patten Towers in two years. The building is supposed to be inspected by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The last time they checked out the 11 story building was February 3, 2011. We're told an inspection hasn't happened since then because of a contract dispute at the national level. That means the department has NEVER inspected the building under current owner PK Management. ___ And you may have thought the great Tennessee whiskey war was over. Well, not in Hamilton County. Commissioners are now working to keep distilleries out of unincorporated areas. Governor Haslam signed a law allowing distilleries on May 16, but county commissioners have 45 days from the signing of the bill to opt out of the law. Commission Chairman Larry Henry says he expects the full commission to pass the resolution. And commissioner Jim Fields says that if unincorporated county residents want distilleries, then they can drum up support themselves for a referendum. ___ The Cleveland area is seeing more signs of gang activity. Officials say they're looking for ways to combat a growing gang culture in the town and that they've seen an increase of gang graffiti in Bradley County in the last six months. Middle school restrooms, the Old Woolen Mill industrial site, and even a local church have been tagged with gang graffiti. Also, more kids are getting gang tattoos. There are reportedly more than 30 gangs in the county, many of them White supremacist groups. Officials say they fear organized crime gangs will migrate to the county from Dalton and Chattanooga. ____ And a Chattanooga man is in stable condition after he was shot multiple times in the head when he tried to fight off robbers on Thursday. The incident happened at 1103 Arlington Avenue. The 38-year-old man is listed in stable condition. _____ And finally, if you're headed to Riverbend tonight, you can expect to see Gavin DeGraw on the Coca Cola stage at 9:30. You can also see Times Free Press critics choice Moon Taxi, as well as Dennis Brown and Nantucket among others.