Chattanooga Update - March 12, 2015

A local mom has been charged in a child abuse case after her 3-year-old daughter was raped and killed. Tatiana Emerson died of blunt-force trauma to the head at Econo Lodge in August. Her brother TrayVon also told police he was repeatedly beaten by his mom’s boyfriend. Until now, 35-year-old Rhasean Lowry was the only person charged in the case. Now the children’s mom, Melanie Emerson, has been charged with aggravated child endangerment. She’s in jail on a $25,000 dollar bond. She’s scheduled to appear in court May 6th. _____ A dead body has been found floating in an area lake. The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office says the body was found in Tims Ford Lake over the weekend. Authorities identified the man as Mark A. Dye of Shelbyville. They believe he died accidentally, although an investigation is ongoing. _____ A man accelerated into a pole and died in a parking lot outside a sports bar in East Brainerd Tuesday. Police say 53-year-old John Woodlee was seen staggering out of Fanatics. Then he backed into several other cars, and crashed into the pole. Now authorities are investigating whether he was over-served. Last month, a Fanatics bartender drove her car into a firefighter who was helping to direct traffic. Andrea Payne was charged with DUI. Police say she had been drinking on the job. _______ TVA has been fined for safety violations at Sequoyah Nuclear Plant. Federal regulators have slapped the utility with a $70,000 dollar fine. It’s the first such penalty in 14 years at an operating TVA nuclear plant. The fine comes after contract workers who were supposed to be watching for fires at the plant in 2012 did not do their jobs. They tried to cover up the failure by falsifying records. The workers were from Day & Zimmerman, whose company motto is “we do what we say.” TVA dismissed the six workers involved. It says it will not contest the penalty. _____ Important evidence is missing in a criminal investigation against the brother of a state representative. The Catoosa County Sheriff’s Office arrested Wesley Gage Weldon February 13th after finding meth inside his house. Investigators took pictures of the drugs at the house, but now they say they can’t find the camera. Four days later an investigator returned to the home looking for the device, but came out empty-handed. Weldon is the brother of Representative Tom Weldon. In the meantime, Wesley remains in jail. ____ Lakeview Middle School was put on lockdown Wednesday when a man threatened to kill himself nearby. Authorities say the man barricaded himself in his house with a pistol and a rifle. The situation lasted about five hours before the man turned himself in. He was charged with making terroristic threats. His wife was also arrested and charged with obstruction. _____ Aggravated assault charges against a Chattanooga bondsman have been dismissed. Charles Key was arrested last month after he fired at a car near the H&H Grocery. Now a judge has ruled that Key acted within his rights as a bondsman. However, one charge of reckless endangerment has been bound over to a grand jury. _____ Chattanooga police have identified the teen shot on Orton Street Tuesday night. Authorities say 19-year-old Henry D. Pope was shot around 10 p.m. He’s expected to survive. Anyone with information is asked to call the police. ____ A Nashville police lieutenant has resigned after he kicked a subordinate in the groin. Police say Lieutenant Wayne Skinner got into a heated discussion about gun rights with Sergeant David Humes. Skinner was a 13-year veteran of the force. A criminal investigation is ongoing. ____ Finally, There’s a new coffee shop on the North Shore. Revelator Coffee has opened in the Nautilus Building on Frazier Avenue. The 1940s building was also renovated to include nine new apartments.